Life In Technicolor
by stopnatsu
Summary: Lucy Heartfilia has grown accustomed to seeing life in black and white, but she dreams of a more colorful world. Desperate to find where she belongs, she leaves her life behind, intent on fulfilling her childhood dream of seeing a rainbow. Will she ever be able to see the beautiful colors of legend? And is it true you can only see them once you meet your soulmate? Multichap AU
1. Goodbye

Lucy swiveled her neck, her dark eyes darting over her surroundings. She took it all in, trying to absorb and memorize every last shred of grass, every last aspect of the place. After all, it was her favorite spot in the entire world, and she wanted it engrained in her mind. She never wanted to forget it.

It was her and her mother's secret spot—they'd encountered it a couple years ago on their daily walk through the Heartfilia estate together, and decided to claim it as their own. There was something about that little clearing in the woods that made everything seem a bit more magical. Lucy's mother swore that the trees grew taller there, that branches were thicker, that the birds sang louder, and _that_ was why it was so magical. But Lucy didn't think so. No, the secret spot was magical because almost instantly, the second they stepped out of the trees and into the little meadow, Layla's smile grew.

They kept the meadow to themselves, telling no one else. It was their little spot, and theirs only.

Lucy's eyes danced around the meadow, trying to recall every single detail, trying to burn it into her memory. Every single leaf, every single blade of grass, every chirp the birds made…she wanted to keep the memories forever.

Her mind recalled every precious moment she'd ever encountered here. The time, when she was seven, and her mother put birdseed in her palms; within minutes, little birds were strutting all over her hands, eating the seed without even the slightest hint of fear. Or the time when Lucy was eight, and they made themselves a picnic basket and went to the secret spot for lunch; they'd stuffed their bellies full and laid on the picnic blanket, trying to find shapes in the grey clouds.

Lucy's favorite moment, however, was one where she was much younger.

* * *

 _"Momma," Lucy had asked, her high pitched voice ringing above the whistles of the nearby birds. "Why is everything all the same color?"_

 _Lucy's mother, Layla, had glanced over at her young daughter, a playful smile working its way onto her lips. "What do you mean, Lucy?"_

 _Lucy's eyebrows had mashed themselves together in frustration. "Well, it's just—everything is the same. There's nothing different. Why is that?"_

 _Layla made her way over to Lucy, her long dress brushing against the long blades of grass. She'd taken her shoes off, and her bare feet were squishing in the soft dirt. With a sparkle in her eyes, she took a seat beside the young girl. "That's a really good question, my dear. Do you want to know the answer?"_

 _"Yes." Lucy replied with a nod._

 _"Well," Her mother began, voice sing-songy, "There once was a girl—a girl with magical powers. Her parents were afraid of her powers, and they locked her away, even though she was just a child. She wasn't allowed to be in contact with anyone."_

 _Lucy frowned. "That's sad!"_

 _Layla nodded. "It is. She grew up terribly lonely. However, her parents had left her with tons of books to keep her occupied, and she read them. Fairy tales, every single one you could think of. After quite a few stories, the girl decided on her one true dream: to fall in love." Layla's eyes glazed over as she told the story, totally invested in it. "She practiced her magic, learned how to control it. And, at the age of seventeen, she used her magic to break free of her parent's jail cell and ran off, looking for her one true love."_

 _"Well, did she ever find her love?" Lucy urged, too impatient to wait for the end of the story._

 _"She thought so," Layla murmured. "She met a boy. He was handsome, and he swept her off her feet. She fell in love so quickly. She was so happy, finally finding her one true love, that she wanted to give a gift to the world. And she did."_

 _"What was the gift?"_

 _"She used her magic to create the rainbow, the most beautiful sight in the world. She wanted everyone to be just as happy as she was when they saw it."_

 _Lucy made a face. "A rainbow? What's that?"_

 _"It shows up in the sky after a rainfall—it's a mix of every color."_

 _The young girl's lips twisted into a pout. "How come I've never seen one?"_

 _"Well," Layla continued with a slight sigh, "That's because the girl got her heart broken."_

 _"What happened to her one true love?"_

 _Layla's eyes went soft as she looked at her daughter. Lucy could practically feel the sadness of the story reflected in her mother's gaze. "The boy didn't love her the same way. He found someone new, someone he preferred." She paused. "He left the magical girl all alone, breaking her heart into a million pieces."_

 _"Oh no…"_

 _"The girl decided she never wanted to be hurt again. She decided that she didn't want anyone to feel as happy as she did, because it only made them hurt once the happiness was gone. She never wanted anyone to see the beautiful rainbow she had created for the boy."_

 _Little Lucy's eyes began to well up. This story was much more depressing than she'd thought it would be._

 _"So…" Layla murmured, "She used her magic and took away the colors from the world."_

 _"This story is awful!" Lucy cried, pigtails flailing as she crossed her arms, upset. "That poor girl…"_

 _"That's not it, though," Layla said, interrupting Lucy's angry tirade. "Right after she took away the colors, she saw the boy and his new love. She saw them comfort each other about the loss of color, saw the love between the two of them. So, she made a new rule, and altered her spell: if you found your one true love, colors would return to you, and you would see them again."_

 _Lucy blinked. "And?"_

 _"And the boy and his new love could see the colors."_

 _"This story is stupid," Lucy hissed, annoyed. "You mean to tell me that the boy and his new love, the one he left the magic girl for, were true loves?"_

 _"That's right. And once the girl saw that, she left and never returned. So, the spell is still in place. That's why you can't see colors, why you've never seen a rainbow. Because you've never met your true love."_

 _Lucy's face twisted up into a deep frown as she ran these new facts through her mind. One true love? Colors? Rainbows? It seemed rather silly, but her mother seemed to truly believe it, and she knew her mom would never lie to her…_

 _"Momma, can you see the colors?"_

 _Layla smiled. "I can."_

 _"You can?" Lucy gasped with excitement. "Was it when you met daddy?"_

 _Layla giggled, resting her hand on top of Lucy's head. Her eyes sparkled, her expression absolutely radiating with love. "No, Lucy," She paused, and her eyes got a little wet. "I saw them the day you were born."_

* * *

Lucy's eyes were wet now, as she peered around the meadow.

 _Remember, remember, remember_ , she urged herself. _Don't forget a single thing._

She glanced around one last time, hiking her bag up over her shoulder. Grey trees, grey leaves, grey grass, grey flowers. Grey birds flew by, whistling a goodbye song to the teen. Tears streaked down her cheeks now, leaving grey little water stains on her grey shirt.

It had been six years since Layla had died. Lucy had been ten. She'd watched her mother's health fail from start to end. She'd watched her lose every single aspect of herself. Lucy had watched her mother lose the ability to walk, to hold herself up. As time went by, she watched her mother start to lose her memories as the Magic Deficiency Disease took up her life force. She watched her mother forget the secret spot, forget everything. On the last day of her mother's life, Lucy came to the realization that the disease had taken her mother's eyesight.

The idea that her mother had passed without having another chance to see the colors broke Lucy's heart.

Years had passed, and things had never quite recovered. Lucy's father, Jude, had thrown himself into his work, causing him to heavily neglect both Lucy and the estate he owned. It had taken a year of deep thought, but Lucy had come to the conclusion that there was nothing keeping her on the estate any longer. She had to take some time and leave, go find herself, live life to the fullest in her mother's honor.

And so, she did. But first, she'd come to say goodbye to the secret spot, the only place on the estate that had held her mother's heart so dearly.

With one last look around the bleak, grey meadow, Lucy murmured out a couple words and then made her way back down the little path in the trees, off to catch the train to god knows where.

"Goodbye, Mom."

* * *

 _ **A/N:** _ Hi readers! So, this is just the first little chapter introducing this story, I hope you liked it! I'm not really sure how long this story will be...at first I was thinking it would just be a oneshot, but now its transformed into what I think might be a short story (just a couple chapters), but this may end up snowballing into a true multichapter story. Let me know what you think, or how long you think this should be! Please review, please message me with ideas, feel free to critique as well :)

Also, title for this story is inspired by "Life in Technicolor " by Coldplay, if that matters to some of you :)


	2. Salamander

Lucy gazed down at all the items she hauled up onto the shop's counter. Some chocolate bars, a bag of chips, some of her favorite magazines that she could read. Laid on top was a little celestial key she'd picked up in the small magic section of the shop. It wasn't anything particularly fancy—Plu the dog—but she'd vowed to herself to buy a celestial key wherever they were available.

"That'll be 28,000 jewel, ma'am."

Lucy hesitated for a second, blinking at the steep price. 28,000? For some junk food and a little celestial key? Not likely.

She turned on the charm instantly, leaning over so her bodacious chest was more visible. Her voice, sing-songy and sweet, lulled out the words, "How about 21,000 jewel and a kiss?" She subtly squished her breasts together with her arms.

The shop-keeper blinked.

Five minutes later, Lucy was huffing down the street, her wallet now 28,000 jewel lighter. Apparently, her dashing good looks and her majestic charm didn't work on these small townsfolk. The idea irked her.

She tried to forget about it as she walked to the local train station, focusing on her journey ahead. She was out of the estate. She was free of her father's clutches. She was going to live life to the fullest, make her mother proud.

She was going to see the rainbow, one day.

Lucy made her way to the teller at the train station, still not really sure where she was headed. Should she go east? West? Was there any place in particular that she'd always yearned to see? Her mind was completely blank.

"Miss, what is your destination?" The teller asked.

"Um," Lucy said, stammering. She read the board on the wall, read the list of possible destinations and their arrival times. Still, she was stumped. She glanced down at her magazine, desperate for an answer from the universe. "I…."

Her favorite magazine, Sorcerer Weekly, seemed to have an answer.

Lucy's favorite model—Mirajane Strauss—was sprawled across the cover page, wearing a pretty bikini. Beneath her were the words 'FAIRYTAIL OF MAGNOLIA!' in bold print. It was like a lightbulb went off in her brain. _Fairytail._ Her favorite guild. It seemed that the universe had made a decision: Magnolia was the place for her.

"Got any tickets to Magnolia?" Lucy asked, deciding to give herself up to fate.

"That'll be 2000 jewel."

Lucy handed over some cash and took her train ticket. She made her way over to the correct train and boarded, happily picking a seat beside the window. As she waited for the train to begin moving, she decided to flip through her magazines. She just _had_ to know what her favorite guild's had been up to while she'd been busy leaving the estate.

Lucy's eyebrows tugged down as her face twisted into a frown. "Ooooh." She hummed to herself. "This looks interesting."

On the first page of Sorcerer Weekly, large bold text announced something practically unheard of.

 ** _Fairytail's Salamander FINALLY caught on camera! After many years of desperate attempts to take his picture, SORCERER WEEKLY has finally managed to catch some shots of the infamous wizard—AND a FULL INTERVIEW! See the spread on page 7!_**

Eyes wide, Lucy frantically flipped to page seven. She'd been idolizing Fairytail ever since she was a kid, and for the longest time, this Salamander guy had been her absolute favorite. He was one of the strongest in the guild, especially for his young age. And he was the funniest one, hands down—he'd always get in trouble because he'd destroy every city he visited. Lucy thought it was absolutely hilarious.

And, up until now, there had never been a picture of him. She'd never been able to put a face to the name. It was bizarre, having a hero but not knowing what he looked liked. Now, she'd finally get the chance.

"Page seven, page seven…." Lucy mumbled under her breath, flipping through the pages. Around her, the train began to fill up; people shuffled on and took their seats, although no one decided to sit in her booth yet. "Ah, here it is."

The glossy page was absolutely littered with photos of the same guy. They were candids—definitely not a photoshoot. In fact, it appeared like the mage was fighting the photographer. Each shot, the boy's face got progressively more angry, until the last shot, where he was spewing fire at the paparazzi.

The boy wasn't quite what she expected. He was shorter, skinnier than she'd thought. Honestly, based off of his reputation, she'd been expecting a carbon copy of Laxus, another Fairytail member she liked. But, no—this guy wasn't the jacked beast she'd come to think of him as. He was young—probably around her age—and looked more boyish than a manly beast. Still, there was something cute about him.

Seeing the pictures of him only confirmed her mild celebrity crush on him.

Lucy read the interview next and tried to keep herself from laughing out loud.

 ** _Interviewer: So, why haven't you been featured in Sorcerer Weekly before?_**

 ** _Salamander: What the hell? Don't stick your camera in my face._**

 ** _Interviewer: Our readers want to know—who do you think is the hottest wizard in Fairytail?_**

 ** _Salamander: Are you f******* serious?_**

 ** _Interviewer: Do you really have a rivalry with Gray Fullbuster?_**

 ** _Salamander: Ice Princess? F*** that guy. Hey—quit sticking that f****** camera in my face!_**

 ** _Interviewer: Do you have a girlfriend?_**

 ** _Salamander: Listen, pal, I said quit it with the camera!_**

 ** _Interviewer: Anything you want to say to your devoted fans out there?_**

 ** _Salamander: That's it! That camera's gonna be a pile of ashes! Jesus f***! F*** you!_**

 ** _*Interview was promptly ended due to combustion.  
**Crude language has been removed._**

Lucy grinned. Yup—he was definitely her favorite now. He set the freakin' interviewer on fire. How could everyone not love him?

She paused for a second. Well, the magic council definitely had reason not to like him, what with his destruction of nearly everything he touched. And some of his guildmates—Gray Fullbuster in particular—often talked about his obnoxious personality. But there was something about him Lucy liked.

He was genuine.

She'd been raised in a world full of fake smiles and fake politeness and fake greetings. She'd gotten used to acting, to putting up a façade. But here was this guy, and he was an utter mess…but that was him, nothing fake about it. And honestly, she respected that.

Amused, she glanced over the photos of the boy again, smirking. But this time, now that she was paying more attention, she realized something was utterly wrong about the photos. Something was different. Something she'd never seen before.

She searched the entire image, really not quite sure what was wrong, desperate to figure out which part of the picture was not making sense in her brain. She ran her eyes over every part of the photos: his face, his body, his arm, the fire spewing out of his finger tips and mouth.

Lucy's eyes landed on his head. Specifically, what laid on top of his head.

It was his hair.

Now, there was nothing particularly different about his hair. Nothing that completely stood out. It was just….the shade of it. It was an odd shade of grey, one that she'd never laid her eyes on before.

Everyone had their own hair shade and that resulted in their own unique shade of grey—Lucy deduced that was because of their actual unique hair color beneath the colorless filter set upon everything. But everyone's shade was relatively similar, not really straying much from the norm.

Lucy's hair, for example, was a light shade of grey. Her mother had said that Lucy's hair was _blonde_ —a kind of yellow. Of course, this meant nothing to her. What the hell did _yellow_ look like? But still, the idea thrilled her. She had a hair color. Incredible.

Other people had different shades, darker ones. Lucy assumed that meant they had darker hair. Her mother had made mention of brunettes and redheads, or people with golden undertones. She'd talked about so many different hair colors, how everyone's was unique, just slightly different frm everyone else's. The idea seemed magical.

To Lucy, everyone's hair was grey. Dark grey, light grey, a smokier kind of middle-toned grey. But this guy, this Salamander…his hair was totally different.

It was light grey. But there was some dimension there, making Lucy think that _no_ , maybe it was middle grey. But then again, the way his hair spiked out and the way the shadows played on the strands made her think it was dark grey. It didn't make sense. A person's hair couldn't be every shade of grey! Something about the tone of his hair was just _different_ , so much that Lucy couldn't make sense of it. It was just weird.

This kid's hair was really messing up her brain, so she decided to take a break from all of these hair thoughts. She closed the magazine, taking a few deep breaths, trying to clear her mind. She closed her eyes, trying to relax.

A voice came from the aisle, bright and high-pitched. "Here's a spot!"

Lucy's eyes snapped open. To her surprise, two bodies and slid into the bench seat in front of her, joining her in her booth. Lucy gave a polite smile, and then returned her gaze to her lap.

Instantly, she froze. Her eyes slowly made their way back up to the pair in front of her.

It was the boy from the magazine. It was Salamander.

He was sprawled out on the train seat, one hand on his stomach and the other on his forehead. He was sweaty, but shivering as if he were cold. Beside him, a cat. With wings.

Lucy;s jaw dropped. "S-Salamander? From Fairytail?"

The boy's eyes flickered over to her, narrowing in slight confusion. He opened his mouth to speak, but the second he did so, the train began to move; instantaneously, he hunched over, holding his stomach, letting out a sad groan.

The cat looked at Lucy. "He gets motion sickness. He'll be fine, though."

"Bluuuuuuuuurggghhhh," The boy hissed out, skin as pale as snow.

"That's—that's…." She trailed off, babbling like an idiot. "That's Salamander."

The cat frowned. "You know Natsu?"

Lucy couldn't take her eyes off of him. He looked like he was about to be ill, but she could tell that was him, the boy from the magazine. Her favorite mage. There were no flames coming out of his finger tips, but his hair was still that glitchy, wonky color that made her head hurt. It was him.

"I—um, no, but I read Sorcerer Weekly a lot, and he just got his first spread in it!"

The boy let out another groan—this time, it was tinged with anger. "Ughhhhhh."

The cat laughed. "Bummer. He was hoping that wouldn't get released."

"Why?" Lucy asked, looking back to the boy.

Although he was basically out of commission—sweaty forehead, cold shivers, gagging like he was about to blow chunks—his eyes seemed alert, and she could tell he wanted to talk.

"Natsu hates the interviewer guy," The cat explained. "He always gets Natsu all riled up. The only reason the pictures made it into the magazine is 'cuz it's the first time Natsu didn't smash the camera to bits."

"Sheesh," Lucy huffed, a smirk on her lips. "Is it really that bad to have some pictures in a magazine and do an interview?"

The boy rolled his eyes, but another wave of nausea hit him and he proceeded to gag.

The cat grinned. "He's not good with people."

"is that why he's got a talking cat for a sidekick?"

"I'm Happy," The cat explained. "Me and Natsu are best friends."

Lucy frowned. "I thought his name was Salamander."

"That's just his nickname," Happy explained. "He got it 'cuz he's got dragon slayer magic—that lead to the whole salamander thing."

"Oh. Are you in the guild, too?" Lucy prodded.

"You betcha!"

"Oh, wow!" Lucy cried, her inner fangirl coming to the surface. "Is Mirajane really that pretty in real life? Is Laxus actually a dick? Is Gray _actually_ the most handsome in the guild?"

Natsu let out a cry of anguish; Lucy wasn't sure if it was from her stupid questions or from his motion sickness.

Either way, Lucy darted forwards, alarmed by how ill he was getting. She touched the back of her hands to his forehead; he was burning hot, really clammy. He was sweating so much that his hair was damp and stuck to his forehead. "He doesn't look so good," She murmured.

Happy cocked his head to the side. "Are you a nurse or somethin'?"

Lucy gave him a warm smile while she prodded at Natsu, checking his heart rate. "Me? No, not a nurse. I just…" She took a breath. "A couple years ago, a family member of mine got sick, so I was around doctors and nurses for quite a while. I just sort of picked up on how to check the basics, I guess."

Flashbacks of doctors surrounding her mother, nurses poking at her skin hit Lucy like a brick wall. She blinked, trying to get the memories away from her, trying to stop her eyes from welling up. She put her focus on the boy in front of her.

"How's he looking?"

Lucy frowned at Natsu, who seemed to be slipping in and out of consciousness. She pulled up his eyelid and looked into his eyes; they seemed glazed over. "Honestly…not very good. Does this happen every time he goes on the train?"

"Yup. Usually we try to avoid the train, but we wanted to get home quickly, and this was the fastest way."

Lucy nodded. She reached over into her bag and pulled out her snacks and drink. "Maybe he just needs something in his stomach, and something to drink."

Happy agreed, and the two began to slowly feed the unconscious boy. Naturally, the second after they'd placed a chip in his mouth, he'd woken up. Still very sickly, still sweating like a pig, he'd accepted the food and drink. Lucy offered some snacks to Happy, too, who graciously accepted.

The train ride went by fairly quickly as the three shared the treats. Lucy kept checking on Natsu, making sure he was staying hydrated, while asking Happy every question she ever had about Fairytail. The little cat obliged, happy to share since this nice lady was taking care of his best friend.

At one point during the five hour long train ride, Lucy and Happy had changed sides. Lucy was now perched beside Natsu, giving him a sip of the drink, still chatting up Happy. The train turned slightly, and Natsu let out a loud groan; he leaned forwards, plopping his head in Lucy's lap.

Lucy blushed at the contact, and peered down at the boy. His big hands were touching her—his left was on the side of her thigh, his right was laid against her hip. His spiky, weird colored hair was the only thing she could see; his face was smushed into her lap. He let out another groan as the train zipped along.

She didn't have the heart to move him, not when he was sick like this. She'd seen sickness in its most furious form with her mother, and now it was her soft spot. She couldn't move him, not when he was so sick and was using her as a pillow.

"So," Happy continued their conversation, "You really like Fairytail, huh?"

"Yup! It's my favorite guild. One day, I'm gonna join."

Natsu stirred in her lap, letting out a mumble.

"You're a mage?" Happy asked.

"You betcha! A celestial mage. I use celestial keys. It's really cool."

The train slowed, and a voice came over the intercom, announcing that they were arriving in Magnolia; within minutes, they were stopped at the station.

Happy poked Natsu until he stirred, and Lucy helped him off the train; she slung his arms over her shoulders and walked him out onto the station, keeping him steady. His condition improved the second they got off the train; he was still a little shaky but was awake and aware and even began to speak, too.

"It was really nice meeting you!" Happy said with a grin. "Thanks for taking care of Natsu."

Lucy gave the cat a warm smile. "Don't worry about it. I had a lot of fun."

Natsu spoke, voice ragged and rough with grogginess. "What's your name, again?"

"I'm Lucy." She said with a soft smile. "It was nice meeting you both." She gave a little wave and then took a step back, about to turn and head off into her adventure.

"Hey—wait a sec!" Natsu called, stepping towards her. "Lucy, wait." He reached out and grabbed her wrist to stop her from turning away.

Lucy paused. "Hm?"

"Why don't you come with us?"

Lucy frowned. "What?"

Natsu blinked, as if it were obvious. "You wanted to join Fairytail, right?"

"Yeah," Lucy mumbled. "And?"

"So, come on. Join."

Lucy rolled her eyes. "I can't join now—I'm not very strong, and I've only got a few celestial keys, and…"

Natsu snorted. "That doesn't matter. Fairytail's a family, and you're really nice. It'll be great."

Lucy glanced away. "I don't know…"

His hand was warm on her wrist; he gave her a cheerful grin. "C'mon. I want you there."

"You do?"

"'Course! You're my friend."

She blinked. "I'm your friend?"

"Well, sure. You took care of me the whole train ride, and you even gave Happy some snacks. That's friendship." He looked back, giving Happy a nod, and then returned his focus to Lucy. "Come on. Join the guild. You can even be on our team."

"That's a lot coming from him," Happy murmured. "He's never made a team before."

Lucy looked Natsu directly in the eyes, not blinking. "You want me to join Fairytail and you want me to be on your team? Are you sure?"

"Yup."

Lucy shrugged. "Well…okay, then. Sounds good to me."

"Great! Let's go get some grub." Natsu cried out, spinning on his heel and hauling Lucy down toward the station doors. "I'm starving."

Lucy couldn't help but burst into laughter, Happy chuckling along as well.

She was happy. She'd never had a more genuine smile on her face. Maybe it was just being with Natsu that inspired this. Being with someone so honest, so genuine…it motivated her to be more genuine as well.

 _ **A/N: Hello, readers! I hope you like this chapter! It's just a little one, and not much happened in it, but I promise things will pick up. And I'll try to update faster! Thanks for reading! Please review!**_


	3. Family

Lucy tilted her chin up, her jaw falling agape slightly as she did so.

She'd only ever seen photos of Fairytail's guild hall before. She'd always thought it was magnificent, standing at the edge of the city, overlooking the ocean. It stood tall, proud, just like the guild that lived within it. Seeing it was one of her very first dreams, one that she'd simply set aside as a silly fantasy.

But, here she was, being lead into the guild hall by one of her favorite mages of all time.

The place was way bigger than she'd initially thought. She'd scoured every single issue of Sorcerer Weekly, seen every inch of the place through photographs, but she'd never thought the hall was this massive.

The hall was a massive, never-ending space. The ceiling sprawled out, so tall that Lucy could hardly see where it ended. Banners hung from the wooden supports with the guild's name cheekily written out. Large tables with bench seating littered the hall, giving room for guild members to eat and rest. In the far back corner, Lucy could make out the bar and the door to the kitchen. A delicious smell wafted through the air, making her stomach grumble.

Most surprising, however, was the people.

Lucy had read every single word that Sorcerer Weekly had ever had to say about Fairytail. She'd memorized every star mage, memorized their battle stats and their signature battle moves. She knew small, unimportant details about members, like what their favorite food was. She was basically an expert on the guild. But, walking into that guild hall, she was absolutely struck with shock.

The place was absolutely packed. That massive guild hall was filled to the brim with bodies. The entire place was erupting with noise, as guild members told stories and joked and laughed at one another. Some were sitting, eating and drinking the day away; others were staring at the mission board, looking to take on some work; others were helping out, carrying dishes or serving food to other members. The place was bustling, teeming with absolute life.

Lucy froze on the spot, just inside the doors. Her body locked up, her mind racing.

Natsu, who had been tugging the girl forward gently by the wrist, stopped when he felt the resistance. He turned, glancing back at Lucy. He searched her face, blinking at her expression.

The girl looked as though she were going to burst into tears.

The entire vibe of the place stunned her. The second they'd walked through those doors, the entire aura of the guild hall hit her like a brick wall. It was… _happy_. The happiest place she'd ever been. So much happier than her bleak life back at the estate, particularly after her mother had passed…

"You okay, Luce?" Natsu asked, a frown working its way onto his lips. He'd only known the girl for roughly seven hours, but he already got the impression that she was a happy person. The girl standing before him—the one looking as though she was going to cry—was _not_ the girl he'd just sat on the train with. He cocked his head to the side, worry flushing through his expression.

"I'm…" Lucy murmured back, not tearing her eyes off of the crowds of people before her. "I…"

She'd spent years living a bleak life. Life on the estate wasn't nearly as fabulous as one might think. She'd been told how to dress, who to talk to, how to behave. She didn't have any friends, and once her mother had passed, Lucy didn't really get the chance to talk to anyone. Sure, she'd chat with the staff occasionally, but her father disapproved of such relations. She'd lived the past couple years of her life lonely, only the bleak view out her window keeping her company.

But here, this place…it was totally different. Everything was still the same bleak, grey landscape, but it was _different_ somehow. The laughter, the friendship, the vibe that the guild hall gave off to her…it was vibrant, somehow. Lucy could tell that this place was absolutely abundant with color, with every color to exist, but her eyes just couldn't pick up on it.

It instantly felt like home.

Lucy made a note in her mind that, _yeah_ , she definitely needed to find her soul mate, just so she could see the absolute electrifying colors of Fairytail.

Natsu stepped towards the girl, his touch moving from her wrist down to her palms; he held her hand softly. "Lucy?"

Lucy blinked, turning her gaze back to the boy. As she did so, a single tear streamed down her cheek. Lucy's hand quickly swiped it away, and she gave Natsu a shy smile. "I'm okay, it's just…" She let out a breath, looking back at the guild. "It's lovely here."

Natsu hesitated for a moment, analyzing the girl's face. After a long second, his frown twisted up into a beaming grin. "Well, c'mon then—let's go meet the family."

Lucy gave Natsu a nod, her heart bursting with happiness. Maybe it was the cheer of the guild hall, or the boy's reassuring smile, but Lucy had never felt more _right_. She could tell this is where she belonged.

It didn't take long for Natsu to introduce Lucy; he certainly wasn't subtle about it. He'd tugged the girl into the centre of the hall, hopped on a table and let out a loud whistle, gathering everyone's attention to his location. Bit by bit, the crowd hushed, allowing the boy to speak.

"Everyone, I've got an announcement to make!" Natsu shouted out, unable to stop the grin from touching his cheeks. "Listen up!"

A voice called out from the back corner. "What is it, flame-breath? Finally admitting that I could kick your ass?"

Natsu's expression immediately flipped, his beaming smile now transformed into a look of pure rage. "In your dreams, Gray! You wanna go right now? I'll turn you into ashes!"

Happy, who had taken a spot at the table Natsu currently stood on, let out a sigh. "Focus, Natsu."

"Eh?" The boy muttered, distracted yet again. "Oh—right." Natsu reached down and grabbed Lucy's arm, hauling her up onto the table with him so everyone could see her. "Everyone, this is Lucy. She's joining the guild."

Lucy's face flushed crimson, and her eyes dropped to her feet in embarrassment. _This_ is how he was going to introduce her? Make a giant scene, interrupt everyone's good time, ruin the happy vibe that had been going on…

The entire hall was silent; no one spoke a word, all eyes on her. Lucy slammed her eyes shut, so embarrassed she wanted to die.

But, to her surprise, a moment later, the guild sprang into action. The entire place cheered; people began to clap and holler in excitement. Together, as a group, the entire guild called out, "Welcome to Fairytail, Lucy!"

Lucy peeked back up, face going even more red once she noticed the entire guild was smiling at her. She gave a shy wave and then cringed back into Natsu, too timid at the moment to give proper thanks.

Everyone seemed to bustle back into action, smiles even brighter on their faces. People returned to their meals, chatter broke out amongst the crowd, and the music began to play overhead again.

Natsu nudged Lucy with his elbow. "C'mon—let's go get you your guild mark!"

Lucy turned to him, nervous. "Was I okay?"

He laughed. "You were great! Now, let's go!"

* * *

Natsu had immediately taken Lucy to meet Mirajane and get her guild mark.

Naturally, Lucy lost her shit at the sight of the beautiful model—she'd always aspired to be like Mira—and nearly cried as the girl magically stamped the guild mark onto the back of her hand out of pure excitement.

Afterwards, Natsu introduced Lucy to every member of the guild. Of course, Lucy knew most of them—she _was_ an expert after all. She went full fan-girl on a couple of them—Gray and Erza, mostly—and even dared to ask for their autographs, much to Natsu's amusement.

They went around and chatted with every single member of the guild. Everyone was super friendly, much to Lucy's relief; they asked her casually about where she was from, who her favorite mage was in the guild. She quickly befriended everyone.

By the time they'd encountered every member, it was getting fairly late; people had begun to exit the hall, giving a wave and a shout before they made their way home. Once Lucy and Natsu had settled at a table, there was only a handful of guild members left in the hall.

"You're a real freak," He noted as Gray walked by, Lucy's body shaking with excitement. He couldn't really blame her—it was weird transitioning from a fan to an actual member. "I didn't think anyone was a fan of _him_."

"Are you kidding? He's only the most popular guy in the guild! Girls go nuts for him. He was once my favorite."

Natsu glanced at her trembling hands. "Clearly. Well, you met the whole family. Whose your favorite now?"

A smile touched at Lucy's lips as she pondered that thought. Everyone was so nice and so sweet to her—Mira had given her a hug, Erza had warned her about Natsu's antics, Gray had given her a big smile—she almost couldn't decide. "Well," Lucy said, head tilting to the side, "Now that I've met everyone, it's probably you."

Natsu made a face, surprised. "Me?"

"Yeah! I mean, you brought me here and you let me join the guild and…" Lucy trailed off for a moment before speaking again, her eyes flashing up to meet his. "I can't thank you enough."

"Don't worry about it! Besides, you fit in right. You're a part of the family now."

Lucy grinned. "Thank you, Natsu."

Natsu's eyes dropped to the table, and to Lucy's surprise, a tinge of darkey grey began to creep onto his cheeks. Blushing. He was blushing, even if it was just a tiny bit. It was an interesting shade, one that was nearly identical to the shade of his hair. It didn't make sense to her, just like his hair color hadn't.

It must be an interesting color. A unique one.

Lucy blinked, surprised by his reaction, regardless of how small it was. And she decided, sitting there, in her new guild hall, that she wanted to find her soul mate and see colors just so she could figure out Natsu's colors.

* * *

The night wore on and it got pretty late.

Lucy and Natsu made plans for the following day: they'd go apartment hunting for Lucy. After all, if she was part of the guild now, she needed a place to stay. She wasn't about to be homeless or anything.

For tonight, though, she'd stay at a local hotel. After a late-night meal at the guild—it was on the house; it was Mira's way of welcoming Lucy to the guild—Natsu walked Lucy to the hotel, holding a sleeping Happy in his arms.

"Where will you go?" Lucy asked as they walked through the cobblestone streets.

Natsu spoke softly, trying to not wake the sleeping cat. "Me and Happy have our own little place a couple minutes out of town. I can show it to you tomorrow, if you want."

"Sure!" Lucy replied with a nod. She was in an incredible mood, one of absolute happiness. She'd never felt so excited about being alive before; things didn't seem so…bleak. "That would be fun."

Natsu nudged Lucy, gesturing that they had to cross the street; they stopped in front of the doors of the hotel. "Well, here ya go."

Lucy looked up at the façade of the building. "Home sweet home. Hopefully not for too long."

"Don't worry—we'll find you a place tomorrow. If not, you can always come bunk with me and Happy."

Lucy snickered. "Yeah, yeah. Let's just hold off on that option for as long as we can. I don't even want to know how much of a slob you are."

"Har har. You're funny."

Lucy shrugged. "I'm a comedian."

Natsu shook his head, laughing a little as he took a step off of the curb. "Yeah, whatever. I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early!" He gave a little wave with his free hand and turned, heading home.

Lucy watched the boy walk out of sight, unable to wipe the smile off of her face. She lingered there for a long moment, standing in the soft glow from the streetlamps, thinking about everything that had happened.

Her journey had started—she was sure of it. This was the beginning of something incredible. She'd made new friends, found where she belonged, found a family…

Lucy thought of her mother for a while, thought of her spirit and her cheerful smile. Fairytail reminded her of her mom: happy, electrifying, vivid. Yeah, maybe the entire world was grey and and gloomy and grim, but Lucy just _knew_ there was something special here, something colorful. She just couldn't see it yet.

With a happy sigh, Lucy stepped back towards the hotel, knowing that deep in her heart, this was exactly what her mother had wanted for her. She'd wanted Lucy to start _living_ , to find some meaning in this world. She'd wanted Lucy to find adventure, find happiness, find something vivid.

And here, with Fairytail—with Natsu—Lucy might have just found it.

She turned, facing the front doors of the hotel again, and stepped inside. She was immediately met by the front desk worker, who handed her over a key once Lucy had paid for the room. Exhausted from the long day, Lucy slowly made her way up to the second floor; she put the key in the lock and twisted, eager to flop onto her bed.

Lucy stumbled into her room, feet aching and sore. She went to slam her body into the soft mattress, but something caught her eye.

Lucy glanced to the bed. The bed was all done up, sheets and bedding laid perfectly onto the mattress. That wasn't really what caught her gaze—no, it was what was on her pillow.

A little chocolate and the head of a rose. Nothing special, really, just the customary little welcome they gave you when you stayed at a hotel. It was cute. It shouldn't have been an issue.

But something was wrong. Something bothered Lucy about the rose.

It was the shade.

It wasn't it's regular, sort of grungey grey-shade. No, this rose was different. It flickered for a moment, reverting back to grey for a split second before changing shades back to whatever it was before. Lucy turned her shoulders, squaring up with the rose, placing her full attention on it.

Color.

* * *

 _ **A/N: Thanks for reading! I hope you liked this chapter! Please review, if it's not too much of a hassle...reviews are really what motivates me to put up the next chapter! Sorry this chap took so long to put up! I've been crazy busy and it took me a long time just to write a sentence. Do you know how hard it is to be descriptive without mentioning colors of things? Lol. Thank you for reading :)**_


	4. Daylight

She glared at the little flower head that was resting in her palm. She poked it with a free finger, flipping it onto its side. Her eyes narrowed at it, a growl ripping through her chest out of frustration.

Lucy was exhausted. She'd barely slept the night before, too troubled by this goddamn _flower_ to get the long rest that she needed. She'd fallen asleep late and woken up early, and decided to discard the idea of sleep. She was too annoyed, too bothered to sleep right now.

So, she just stared at it, tried to make sense of what was before her.

A single, vibrant rose in a world of grey. Everything else was the same: grey, middle grey, dark grey, black and white. A monochromatic scheme. Except for this damn flower.

She couldn't really _explain_ how it was different, except that it was. It wasn't grey. It wasn't any shade of grey, nothing like that. It was different, vibrant, exploding with pigment.

The color was soft. Gentle. It reminded her of the beach. This color was the sun kissing your cheek as you ran through the trees. It was happy, like a warm hug. This color was light, cheerful. It made her lips twist up in a smile without even a thought.

It reminded her of her mother.

Lucy let out a sigh, twisting the stem of the flower in her fingers, her eyes dancing over the shade. She didn't know what it was—she knew colors had names, but she'd never really been able to understand how or why. Was this the beautiful reds her mother spoke about? Was this the deep blues her mother had mentioned throughout her tales?

She wasn't really sure—but she knew she had to figure it out.

Before Lucy knew it, there was a knock on her door. Clasping her fingers around the flower tightly, Lucy went and opened it, surprised to see Natsu leaning against the doorway, Happy on his shoulder.

"Hey, Luce," Natsu said with a wave. After a second, he frowned. "You okay? You look funny."

Happy hit his best friend in the arm. "Natsu! You're not supposed to say that to girls!"

"Why?" The boy sputtered. "She looks weird."

"You're supposed to _compliment_ them. Positive things."

Natsu rolled his eyes. "Ugh—fine. Lucy, you look positively weird. Is that better?"

Happy let out a groan. "Forget it."

She thought about telling them for a moment. Maybe they could help her? Maybe they could explain whatever was happening? Hell, maybe they even knew what color this was? She opened her mouth, about to speak, but froze at the last second.

Lucy glanced at the boy before her, ran her eyes over his grey skin and his odd shade of grey hair. She closed her eyes, clasping her fingers around the flower in her palm tight. No, she couldn't tell them—they wouldn't understand. She highly doubted either of these two twerps had found their soulmates. If she tried to explain it to them, it wouldn't make sense.

You couldn't really explain colors to people who hadn't seen them.

Besides that, there was a large group of the population who didn't believe the rumors about colors. They were actively against the concept of color, of vibrancy of any kind. These people believed that colors were just a weak dream, a hope of some of the more foolish people in the world.

Lucy shut her mouth, deciding not to speak. She didn't want be judged for believing in colors, let alone labelled crazy for believing to have seen one.

Lucy let out a sigh. "Come in," She murmured, ushering the boys in to her hotel room. "I'm alright, just didn't sleep very well."

Natsu dashed into the room and belly flopped onto Lucy's bed, snuggling up to her pillows. "Hotel beds are always the comfiest!"

Lucy sat on the edge of the bed, the confusion starting to eat at her. So, apparently she could see a color—or so she believed. She didn't know what it was, or how to describe it. More confusing than the actual shade was how it had appeared: only one single object had deviated from the normal grey tones. How was that possible? Wasn't everything supposed to turn on, like a switch, and suddenly nothing is grey and everything is exploding with color?

This wasn't at all how she had expected it to turn out.

Natsu sat up, hugging a pillow tight to his chest. "You ready to look at apartments today?"

Happy joined in. "We ate a huge breakfast so we're prepared to walk around all day long!"

Natsu nodded. "Yup."

Lucy offered them a small smile. She was far too caught up in her own confusion to be as deliriously happy as she was the day before. "Thanks, guys. That means a lot."

A part of the girl wanted to stay silent on the topic of colours, keep the confusion to herself and not bother anyone else with it-but her more curious side urged her to speak out, confront the chaos in her mind.

And so, after a few minutes of deliberation, Lucy shyly mumbled out, "Is there a library in this town? One that might have books on...colours?" Lucy gave a shy glance to the guests on her bed, silently praying they didn't react negatively.

To her surprise, the boy's expression remained unchanged. "There's a big library at the guild, you could probably find somethin' in there."

"You want to learn about colours?" Happy asked, more to be polite rather than out of interest. In fact, both the little cat and the boy seemed relatively i phased by her question. "I always wanted to know what color I was."

"Maybe there's a book that says what color cats are," Natsu offered to his best friend. "We can figure it out."

"Doesn't matter much," Happy shot back. "I won't know what it means. Everything's still black and white for me. Guess I haven't found my soul mate."

Lucy smiled to herself, more than a little excited to dive into a book. She wanted to learn more about colours and the process the body went through once the eyes were able to see them. Was it fast? Was it slow? Would she only ever be able to see this one color? Would she be able to give this pigment a name? The world was full of mystery.

Natsu cocked his head to the side. "Do cats have soul mates?"

"If I didn't have a soul mate, why would everything be black and white?"

Natsu sat back for a moment, thinking. His expression had twisted into a pensive stare at the bedding. After a long moment, the boy shrugged. "Fair enough."

"Lucy, why do you want to learn about colors?" Happy inquired, giving her a cheerful smile once he noticed her troubled expression.

"Oh," Lucy replied with a shrug, not doing very well to mask her rather fretful looks, "Just interested in 'em, I guess. I wanna know what I'm missing out on." She let out a little huff of air and then forced a smile onto her lips, hoping it would cover her rather tragic attempt at lying. She wasn't quite ready for her secret to spill— _that she'd seen a color_ —not when she didn't understand it or know what it meant.

The idea that she'd _met her soul mate_ hadn't quite struck her yet; she was far too focused on the concept of the actual shade she'd managed to catch a glimpse of.

"Well," Natsu spoke up, pulling his body up from the soft mattress, turning his attention to the girl, "If you want, we could head there first, then grab some grub, then go looking at apartments."

"Really?" Lucy replied, surprised by how casual they were about it. Wanna read about colors? Sure, let's go. It was that simple with them. Memories about living on the estate, being told what to do and what to read and every suggestion of hers being shot down flooded back. She realized she didn't miss the place at all. "If we could, that'd be great."

Happy fluttered up, wings flapping. "I bet Levy will be there! She could help us find the books!"

Lucy hopped up from her seat, excited and ready to figure just what had been going on with her. "Let's do it!"

And off they went.

* * *

"This," Levy said with a grunt, "Is the best resource on colors I've ever encountered." She plopped a book down onto the table with a groan of pain; the book was nearly her size.

Dust flew into the air, puffing up into a cloud directly into Natsu's face. He let out a cough, his hand trying to wave the air away from his now plugged throat. "Jesus," He muttered, eyes narrowed. "I didn't think people knew that much about colors."

"Well, it's got all the basics—what each color is, what it looks like, key objects in the world that take on that shade. But it also goes into acquiring technicolor sight and even about losing it. It's a pretty interesting read."

The trio had run to the guild hall and headed straight for the library, where they'd encountered Levy. Out of the entire guild, she spent the most time in the library and helped Lucy locate every book the guild had on colors—and suggested the best option to learn about each shade.

Lucy stared down at the book, a little overwhelmed. She'd wanted to learn about the color she was seeing and _why_ this was happening, but she hadn't thought it would be such a process—this book was massive. Still, she was eager to dig in, and she opened the cover.

To her surprise, the first two pages were a large image of a field, one that was reminiscent of her secret spot on the estate; it was a lush field filled with large cherry trees and wildflowers. But it wasn't the image that really stood out to Lucy—it was the color of it.

Everything was grey, bleak, just like normal…until all of a sudden it wasn't. That one single shade she could now see had cropped up in the image, flooded it. There were hints of it all over the picture, dotted across it and mixed into little tidbits of flowers. Lucy could tell, just by the way it faded in and out, that it was a vital shade to the world; it was on the flowers, the trees, the grass. But mostly, it was in the sky.

This color was the sun.

Lucy flipped through the pages, forcing herself to flip along at an easy pace so as to not give away that she was actually desperately hunting for a specific portion of the book: the name of her color. She _had_ to know. She needed to put a name to the shade.

As Lucy flickered through the pages, Levy spoke about the topic. She'd read every book on the subject of colors—she thought the idea of them were dreamy—and knew just about everything there was to know.

"There's not a lot of research into the topic of technicolor sight simply because so much of the scientific community thinks its bogus. Some people randomly gain the ability to see these colors that no one else can. It's very interesting."

Natsu leaned against the table, crossing his arms. "So _no one_ has figured out why it happens to random ass people?"

Levy pushed up her reading glasses. "There's been experiments conducted on those that supposedly have the ability to see the colors, but nothing has come up. There is no physical change in the eye that would result in technicolor sight. There isn't even a chemical change in their bodies. Scientists are officially stumped." She took a moment to pause for thought, and then spoke again. "Maybe the tales are true—maybe humanity is cursed until they find their true love."

Happy let out a groan. "Colors sound cool—why can't I find my soul mate?"

Natsu made a face. "How do they even know its got anything to do with soul mates? What if people just get the ability randomly and that's that?"

"Some people theorize about that it's a random occurrence. But others believe the old wives' tale about the broken hearted witch pretty seriously. Personally, I'd like to think it's meeting the soul mate that triggers the ability to see colors. It just sounds so dreamy."

Lucy's eyes scanned the pages before her, still tuned in to the conversation occurring beside her. She flipped the page absentmindedly, and, to her surprise, was shockingly met with an entire page beaming bright with her color.

 _Yellow_ , the page read. _A bright and cheerful color. It is the shade of the sun, bananas, and often described as the color of light. Individuals who have yellow toned hair are called blondes, although the range of blondes can differ greatly._

More information filled the page about the color, and Lucy drank it in, satisfied that she'd finally found an answer to her question. _Yellow_. Blonde. It was a rather happy color, now that it wasn't filling her mind with confusion. She liked looking at it.

The color was incredible. It was the beach, it was beams of sunshine, it was daylight. She stared at it for a long time, jaw dropped in awe of its utter beauty. How had she lived a life without this color? How had she thought anything was beautiful before, before this single shade of yellow had made itself known?

Still, as she glanced over the images filled with yellow objects, Lucy found herself encountering bits of grey, black and white. It was like her eyes couldn't pick up on every single shade of yellow, like her brain could only understand the one single type of yellow so far.

Lucy continued to read the book, completely entranced by the topic. She read more about the color— _yellow_ —and what objects were that shade. Once she was finished what that section, she moved on, no longer listening to her friends chat in the background. Now, she was completely enthralled with the idea of colors.

She read about the education on colors. Some kids knew about them, while others didn't, simply depending on location. Some areas were more strict on the idea of colors being prohibited and didn't allow conversation about colors. Other areas were more liberal with the topic and the basics of color were even taught in primary schools. For the majority of people, colors were the stuff of legends, and that's all.

Lucy also read about the process of gaining technicolor sight. There were firsthand entries from people who had gained the ability to see colors, entries where they talked about their worlds springing to life, full of color. There were hundreds of these personal accounts of seeing color for the first time, and Lucy read every single one of them.

To her surprise, every single person who had their story in this encyclopedia had gained the ability to see color after meeting someone who ended up being extremely significant in their lives. In nearly every entry, this person they was described as being the person's 'soul mate'.

Perhaps the tales were true, then. Maybe Lucy's mother had been right. Maybe there was a spell cast on all of humanity, stripping them of the most beautiful thing they owned—until they met their soul mate, the person made for them.

Thoughts of Lucy's mother wandered back into her brain, making her eyes wet. Any time Lucy had asked about colors, Layla would try to explain to the fullest of her ability; she'd go on long tangents trying to describe the color of the sky, the trees, the grass. She'd talked about the color of Lucy's hair and the shade of her eyes. She'd told Lucy everything she knew about colors.

Her mother had said that she gained the ability to see colors the second Lucy was born. The second she'd given birth and looked into little Lucy's eyes…that was when it had happened for her. Her world was struck and thrust into life as the colors exploded around her, lighting up everything. Lucy had been her soul mate, the person perfect for her, the person that meant the most.

And Layla had told Lucy to go on, to explore the world to the fullest, to find that one person that would set Lucy's world ablaze.

Apparently, she had—she just wasn't sure who.

Perhaps it was a stranger she'd bumped into on the train? Or that person that had smiled at her at the book store? Or maybe it was one of the several thousand Fairy Tail guild members she'd been introduced to the day before.

It could've been anyone. She could've given her soul mate a passing glance yesterday, and she'd never know other than the fact that certain objects were quite blatantly yellow. Would it be her best friend? Or future husband? Perhaps someone she would take under her wing? Lucy couldn't quite say what her relationship with her soul mate would be—after all, she didn't have the slightest clue who it could be.

But she was intent to find out.

Lucy let out a sigh, flipping back one last time to the page that described _yellow_. She ran her eyes over the page, surprised to see that even more of the image had become bursting with color: now, there were several shades of the color that popped out at her. Brighter shades flecked onto the flowers in the picture, while darker shades of yellow cast a hazy glow on the trees. It was rather interesting to her just how many possible types of yellow there were—and she couldn't even see the full picture yet.

Lucy was positive that once she gained the ability to see every single color, she would be utterly overwhelmed.

Another important detail dawned on Lucy as she thought about the stories she had just read. Every single person's recollection of gaining the ability to see color had been an instant sort of thing, like they'd just walked into a bright room from pitch black. No one had described what she was going through: a slow, sluggish careen into vibrancy.

It didn't make sense; a frown worked its way onto her features. Why were colors hitting her so slowly? Was her brain faulty, or something? Or perhaps she'd only met one of multiple soul mates, so she only got a couple colors if she was lucky?

Frustrated with even more confusion, Lucy closed the book and peered back up to her surroundings. She'd come here to have her questions answered, not leave with even more!

To Lucy's surprise, Natsu was asleep face down sitting across from her, snores echoing through the entire library. Happy was leaning against Natsu, quieter snores emitting from him. Levy had gone off to a bookshelf and was sorting through some novels, searching for something hidden far in the back.

Lucy couldn't help but watch the boy sleep, smirking at his cheeks all smooshed up against the table. He looked very young all of a sudden, very innocent. His eyebrows drew down as his face twisted up into a frown, acting out whatever situation was occurring in his dream. Lucy felt her lips spread into a smile as she watched him sleep, her cheeks getting a bit warm.

She wasn't sure what it was, but she felt comfortable here, in the guild with Natsu and Happy. They'd taken her in when she was alone, wandering the earth without a friend in the world and made her feel welcome. They'd brought her into the family—the guild—and insisted that she join.

Lucy had never been great at making friends, but with these two, it had been easy.

It was the second day she'd known them, and even though she could only see one color so far, she could tell that these two—her friends—were the brightest things in her life. She couldn't wait to start her adventure with them.

* * *

 _ **A/N: Hi readers! Thanks so much for taking the time to read my little story. For those who have asked, I haven't planned out how long this story will actually be. I honestly don't know. At first I was thinking it would be rather short, but more ideas keep popping up in my head and I don't know if I'll explore them yet. Quite honestly I don't see it ending soon - I have more stuff I want to show you guys about this little AU. Thanks for the questions, though! Keep 'em coming!**_

Thank you so much for reading and THANK YOU for all of the reviews and follows and favorites! I am astounded by the feedback and it motivates me to write so much more. Thank you!

PS: This chapter is a little boring and lame but I've gotta get some of the details about seeing color out there! Don't worry, things will be picking up soon. Please leave me a review telling me what you think so I can make this story the best it can be!


	5. Flames

Lucy's eyes focused on the cobblestone streets before her. She noted the way the light refracted off of the raindrops, off of the slick pavement that wove its way through the city. The wind whipped through the city, sending every single flag that lined the streets wildly. The river sloshed up against the brick guard rails as the icy rain pelted down on it.

She had spent all night at the guild hall with Natsu and Happy, completely ignoring the fact that she had blown the day away and had yet to find an apartment that she could call home. By the time she'd gotten done at the library, it was far too late to meet with possible landlords—not to mention the fact that Natsu and Happy had passed out and were fast asleep. So, rather than wake them from their nap, Lucy had let them rest. She'd finished the giant book about colors with more questions and confusion in her head than she'd had when she began it.

When the boys woke up, they'd all decided to go down to the hall and get some food, much to Natsu's satisfaction. After they all pounded back a hot meal, Lucy made her rounds and chatted up her new guild mates. Although she was incredibly nervous—she never was really good at making friends—Natsu urged her on, promising not to leave her side the entire time.

And he didn't. Every time she spoke to another person, Natsu was right there, a warm beam of comfort directly beside her. If there was a lull in conversation with someone, he'd pipe right in and prevent any awkwardness from occurring. By the end of the night, Lucy had made some good friends, and she owed it all to Natsu's comforting presence.

Happy left earlier in the night, going back to his and Natsu's place, desperate for a piece of fish and a nap.

Someone had warned the guild members to get home before it got too late, because some freak thunderstorm was supposed to hit Magnolia. Natsu had promised Lucy that he'd walk her to her hotel before it got bad out, and Lucy had agreed.

But, the time got away from the two and they had such a great time chatting and _yes_ , Lucy might've had two too many pints—Natsu had instigated Lucy in a chugging competition; Natsu won—and the two teens had completely forgotten about the thought of any wild storm.

Until the guild hall had emptied of members and they were all set to leave, that is.

"Hmph," Lucy said, crossing her arms as she stared out of the guild hall's doors. "How will we get to the hotel?"

Natsu was leaning against the big wooden door frame, hands in his pockets. "Shit," He cursed, glaring out at the ridiculous amount of rain slamming down on the pavement. It was raining so hard it was hard to hear. He turned to look at Lucy. "Don't worry—I'll get you there."

"It's all the way across town!"

He shrugged. "It's not that big of a deal."

"But then you'll have to walk all the way through town again to get to your house!"

Natsu rolled his eyes. "It's just a little rain."

Lucy made a face, her ears still a bit hot from the beers she'd guzzled down. "More like a _lot_ of rain."

The two glared out of the guild hall at the storm for a second longer, both pouting. But in the next instant, everything took a turn for the worse: a shock of lightning flashed through the sky, followed by an eruption of thunder that shook the entire guild. As the thunder crackled out and fizzled through the air, the lights in the guild hall blinked out to absolute darkness. Hail began to fall from the sky, slamming into the ground like chunks of rocks falling from the heavens.

Lucy let out a cry of fright as the power went out, her first instinct to reach towards Natsu. "Holy shit!" The girl hissed under her breath. "Where the hell are you?"

She heard a snort. "Right here."

Blind, Lucy padded around, feeling the wooden door frame. "Natsu?" She whispered out, fear creeping down her spine. She wasn't really a fan of being in the dark—and she especially didn't like being in the dark whilst thunder boomed throughout the sky.

But the next second, a pair of warm hands had grabbed her fingers and pulled her close; she stumbled forwards, her head gently bumping into what she assumed was his chest. Natsu's big hands landed on her shoulders.

"You good?" He asked. A flash of lightning smashed onto a tree outside, sending a flicker of light onto his face, making him visible for that split second.

Lucy nodded. "I'm fine, but…" She sucked in a breath and let out a heavy sigh. "Do you think there's any chance that the power is still on at the hotel?"

Natsu turned, glancing outside, keeping his hands on her shoulders. "Doubt it—even the street lights are off. Looks like the entire town's out."

She let out a groan of annoyance. "Darn. I'm scared of the dark."

Natsu looked back at her. "Come to my place then." He said plainly, as though it made perfect sense.

Lucy made a face. "Your place?"

He blinked. "Yeah."

"And how exactly does that rid me of my fear of the dark?"

Natsu rolled his eyes, lifting his big palm from her shoulder and choosing instead to reach down and grab her hand. He turned, looking out the guild hall doors, inspecting the rain and hail that was mauling the sidewalk below. "Just watch and see, sassafrass."

Lucy opened her mouth, about to complain about his grip on her little hand, but she didn't get the opportunity to continue speaking; the boy hauled her forwards, pulling her out into the rain. Immediately, her skin was absolutely assaulted by rain and hail; it felt like a million little needles hitting everywhere, all at once. "Gah!" She cried, her hands reaching up to cover her head. "What the hell, Natsu!"

Natsu didn't hesitate; immediately he pulled her off the steps of the hall and down the sidewalk. They dashed to the nearest bit of cover, hiding beneath some storefront's tiny little shade.

The air was freezing and the rain bit at her skin and she couldn't hear a goddamn thing over the roar of the storm, but there was a grin on her face as they ducked into the little corner of the street, trying to hide their bodies from the sting of the hail.

"Where are we going?" Lucy cried, her voice a mere whisper over the howl of the storm.

Natsu ducked his head out and glanced down the street, his hair already absolutely soaked. His clothes clung to his body, sopping wet. "My place," He shouted back, trying to overpower the sound of the storm. "Here—take this." He pulled off the scarf tied tightly around his neck.

"What's this for?" Lucy replied, holding up the white scarf in confusion.

Natsu rolled his eyes, laughing at her lack of understanding. "Here," He muttered, opting instead to tie the scarf around her himself. He pulled it open, unfolding it as much as possible and crossed it over her shoulders, hoping it would protect her even a little from the weather. "We're gonna make a break for it, okay?"

Lucy frowned. A break for it? "How far away is your place?"

Natsu's lips broke out into a wide grin. "You'll see." He gave her a wave, beckoning her to follow him, and he dashed out into the horrible weather yet again. The rain was falling so hard he nearly disappeared from sight.

Lucy stood there for a long second, watching the boy disappear into the mist of rain, unable to wipe the grin off of her face.

So _this_ was what her mother meant. This was what her mother had wanted her to do—go out and live life to the fullest. Run around in rain storms, nearly getting beaten to a pulp by hail. Lucy had to admit, she was having a blast. She was happier than she'd ever been, and it was her second day here.

She'd just met this boy and already she could tell he was her best friend. She didn't question these feelings. They made absolute sense.

They were, quite frankly, absolute strangers still—but there was something about him that screamed that she was home, that she belonged. She wasn't one to question intuition.

And so, Lucy dove out into the rain, legs pushing her faster and faster as the water pounded against her skin. And as she ran, catching up to Natsu, she realized that she was laughing out loud. She was having so much fun she just couldn't contain it. An overwhelming wave of happiness enveloped her, and it was oddly familiar; it reminded her of her mother, before she got sick.

Natsu was laughing too, grinning back at her as they ran forward at full force.

And even though it was dark out and there were no streetlights and there was absolutely no hint of the yellow shades she'd become familiar with that day, Lucy figured that this was the brightest her life had ever been. Everything was grey and bleak but she was running in the rain with this boy that felt like _home_ , and to her, that was just about as vibrant as it could get.

Who needed colors when you had Natsu Dragneel?

It took them nearly twenty minutes to run to Natsu's house—he had failed to mention he lived _that_ far out of town—and by the time they arrived, their skin was aching and raw from the beating they'd just received from the hail.

They clambered into the little house, Lucy complaining about her wounds—the hail had cut her up pretty bad, and she was bleeding a little bit. Natsu turned on a light-the little house must have been far away from town; the power was dim, but still on-and looked closely at Lucy's wounds.

Natsu cringed when he looked at the cuts covering her body. "Yikes," He whispered, trying to be quiet so as to not wake a sleeping Happy. "That must hurt."

Lucy frowned at him. "How the hell are you not all cut up? That's not fair!"

Natsu snorted. "Guess I dodged 'em."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say, tough guy." She looked at his bare shoulders, not noticing any open wounds or cuts like hers, but rather some severe bruising from some larger chunks of hail that had rained down on him. She poked the bruise.

Natsu grimaced, still observing her wounds. "Ow." He went to a cabinet and got some sort of antibacterial cream and put it on some cuts on Lucy's arm; she cringed as he did so.

"Oh, so you _do_ feel pain," Lucy mumbled, a smile working its way onto her lips. "Not so tough now, are we?"

"Says the girl crying about a couple cuts," He shot back sarcastically.

Lucy narrowed her eyes. "They're deep." She paused, letting out a shiver; she rubbed her bare arms, freezing from the rain.

"Sure, wimp," He muttered, finished cleaning up and attending to her wounds. "C'mon, I'll get you all set up in bed—and I'll get you some dry clothes."

Lucy nodded, cheeks a bit warm, although she swore it was just her being flushed from running so hard. "Great."

Natsu had dug through his closet, grabbing a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, and tossed them at Lucy. As she changed in the washroom, Natsu fixed up the bed for her to sleep in, throwing extra blankets onto the single thin sheet he used.

Lucy, hair soaking wet and skin still stinging from the cuts, made her way back to the bedroom. "Cozy place you've got here," She murmured, looking around the little house, taking in all of the details. Around the little home was a bunch of memorabilia; little things from trips he'd taken, places he'd seen, missions he'd been on. The entire little house a soft little glow about it, one that Lucy recognized as a pale shade of yellow. Overall, Natsu and Happy's house was...well, sweet. She immediately felt comfortable there.

Natsu tossed another pillow onto the bed for the girl. "Thanks." He grabbed an extra pillow from the closet, tucking it under his arm. "Well, here ya go-you get the bed. I can crash on the floor."

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "You sure? I don't mind taking the floor. I don't want to inconvenience you."

The boy smirked. "Don't worry about it, Luce."

Lucy smiled, hopping into the bed, tugging the blankets up to her chin. Natsu tossed his pillow onto the floor, going to flick the lightswitch. However, just as he did so, a loud flash of lightning lit up the room; the entire bedroom fell dark, a loud clap of thunder following afterwards. Lucy gasped loudly, hiding beneath the blankets, afraid.

She wasn't afraid of the dark, per say, but she wasn't exactly a fan of not having light whenever she pleased. It made her uneasy.

"Natsu," Lucy whimpered from beneath the blankets, her eyes slammed shut. "It's too dark."

Natsu's voice was steady, calm, not bothered by the sudden lack of light. "Hey-no worries, Luce. Open your eyes."

Lucy peeked through her left eye, lifting the blankets off of her face. To her surprise, she wasn't enveloped by darkness; instead, there was a soft light coming from the wall, where Natsu was standing. Lucy sat up, narrowing her eyes, trying to adjust to the darkness to see what was in his hands. To her surprise, it was flames.

The flames flickered gently, emitting a gentle glow over the bedroom. Lucy looked at them surprised to see flecks of yellow every so often among the grey fire. She thought that the flames were beautiful, especially now that she could understand that the color yellow made part of them up. She yearned to see the rest of the colors involved in fire, desperate to make sense of the beauty, to see it fully.

The flames lit up Natsu's face, and Lucy could see that he was smiling down at the little fire sitting perfectly in his palm. Seeing his expression-that look of serenity on his face-made her lips spread up into a little smile.

"I forgot-you're a fire mage."

Natsu's eyes fixated on hers. "Yup. Power outages aren't really a problem at the Dragneel residence."

Lucy patted the open side of the bed, beckoning him towards her. She wanted to see these flames-the world famous _Salamander_ flames-up close. Natsu obliged, taking a seat beside Lucy, letting the heat of the flames wash against her face.

Lucy was absolutely enthralled by the fire, watching with utter curiosity as the yellow flickered up through each flame, sputtering out at the ends and then returning at the base as if it were a cycle. "They're beautiful," She murmured, watching the fire carefully. "It's a beautiful form of magic."

Natsu had a little smile on his lips, happy that he could make a look like _that_ wash over Lucy's face. "I think so too."

They sat there for a little while, both watching the flames dance over his palm silently.

"I wish my magic was beautiful," Lucy whispered, sighing happily at the fire. "Celestial spirit magic is cool, but not aesthetically pleasing."

"Well, here. Stick your hand out."

Lucy's eyes widened, looking at the boy like he was crazy. "What?"

"You can try fire. Gimme your hand."

"It'll burn me!"

Natsu rolled his eyes. "Trust me, okay? Stick out your hand."

Heart pumping with nerves, Lucy poked her hand out nervously. Natsu put his hand beside her and tilted it; the flames slid off of his palm as if they were a liquid, rolling over onto Lucy's palm. Except they weren't really on Lucy's palm-they were just slightly above her hand, not touching her skin, but so close it looked as though she were wielding the flames, too. She could feel the heat over her skin, but it was never enough to bother her; it was right at the limit that she could handle. Hot, but not too hot.

Lucy glanced down at the flames flickering over her skin, her lips twisting up into a grin. She looked over at Natsu, who was holding his hands up, controlling the flames so they didn't bother the girl. She turned back to the fire, absolutely dazzled by the rich yellow colors twisting in and out through the flames.

As the flames danced, Lucy could feel something be ignited deep in her soul. Just like Natsu's fire, something in her was set ablaze, and it bubbled up into her lips, making her smile grow wider.

She was happy. Truly, completely happy. She'd found a place where she belonged, with friends who she belonged with. And nothing had ever been better.

Lucy was sure that if her mother was here, she would be absolutely proud.

Natsu grinned. This was the biggest smile he'd seen on Lucy's face so far. He was happy he'd made that smile happen.

Lucy looked at the fire, entranced by its beauty. But, to her surprise, something began to shift and change ever so slightly. At first, she thought it was the fire moving in a different way, but it took her a long minute to realize that _no_ , it wasn't a sort of movement. It was a shift, a change that wasn't extremely distinct.

Bit by bit, more color erupted onto the flames. Sure, there was still yellow, but there was something else twisting into it. Darker than the yellow, but not necessarily a dark color. Lucy couldn't make sense of it. All she was that it was absolutely ravishing, a color that was even more vibrant and joyful than the beautiful yellows she had discovered.

She promised herself that she would go to the guild's library and figure out the name of this color before they went apartment hunting the next day. For some reason, this was priority over finding a place to live. She _had_ to know what this color was.

Not only that, but she wanted to do more research into _why_ she was discovering these colors.

The night went by quickly, and before Lucy knew it, she was falling asleep. One moment, she was awake, chatting with Natsu with the flames in her hand, and the next, she was cuddled up in bed, tucked in ever so gently. She opened her eyes, dazed, surprised to see Natsu pulling the blankets up around her chin, his body set ablaze to light the room as he did so.

Huh. Boy on fire. You'd think such a sight would freak a girl out. Apparently, not Lucy. Seeing this flame-boy tucking her in and making himself comfy on the floor sort of eased her, oddly enough. It was comforting knowing that he was right there, nice and close to her, ready to light the way if she needed him to.

He was her own personal sun, something to light the way in the dark.

Before she passed out completely, Lucy silently thanked her lucky stars for allowing her to meet Natsu.

 _ **A/N:** **I know this took way too long to come out. Life got in the way. I'm really sorry. But I intend to finish this and I will upload more consistently, promise! Please review, criticize, give me ideas or even guess what will happen. I love hearing feedback! Thanks for reading! :)**_


	6. Discovering Orange

Lucy awoke groggily, hair a mess and blankets strewn across her body recklessly. It took her a long, dazed moment to realize exactly where she was—after a couple confused minutes, the memories of the day before slammed back into her consciousness, reminding her of everything that had occurred.

Oh, right. She was at Natsu's. Lucy peered down to her right, beyond the edge of the soft mattress; her favorite Fairy Tail member was still passed out hard on the floor, his cheeks smushed up against the wooden floorboards, a loud snore escaping his lips. Lucy smirked.

She leaned back into the pillow, now turning her gaze onto the room which surrounded her; almost instantaneously, her body froze up, absolutely shocked by the sight before her.

The light from the sun was washing in through the windows, refracting off of the soft curtains, spreading the light across the wall of the bedroom. Near the window, the light was a soft, dull yellow—but as it progressed along the wall, it shifted to that other shade, the one Lucy had first recognized in Natsu's flames.

The hue was similar to yellow, but utterly different and unique. Something about it was richer, deeper than the simple yellows she'd been picking up on the past few days. This color was beautiful, absolutely ravishing—enough that Lucy lost her breath as she stared at it.

The color of the light—which was beginning to wash over the entire bedroom as the sun began to rise—was warm, cozy, but not bland in the slightest. This color was fire. It was heat. It was invigorating and shocking, but still somehow comforting.

Lucy blinked up at the walls, at the ceiling, admiring the shade. She noticed how seamlessly the yellow colors transitioned into this new, different shade. It was absolutely gorgeous.

How had she lived life before color? How had anything been beautiful when she'd been missing out on this?

Well, that was that. She couldn't bare to live a full day without knowing the name of this new color. She had to go to the library— _stat_. She needed to study that encyclopedia through and through, figure out all of the colors she could see. She was desperate.

Lucy let out a sigh, pulling herself to the edge of the bed again, peering down at the boy sleeping on the floor. She flopped onto her stomach and stretched out her arm, poking him in the cheek gently. The boy's snores faltered for a quick second, and then continued louder than before.

"Natsu," Lucy murmured, poking him in the cheek one more time with slightly more force. "Natsu, wake up. We've got something important to do."

"Hmmnfmmmph," Natsu grumbled back, his eyebrows tugging together, squishing his face into a little frown as he slept.

Lucy couldn't help but smile down at him. So _this_ was Salamander, the famous and feared member of Fairy Tail? "Get up." She poked him in the chest.

That seemed to wake him up a little. His hands moved up, slapping her finger away. Still, his eyes did not open. "Hummmmph," He groaned, a scowl on his face. "No."

Lucy was trying to hold back laughter, now. "Natsu, we need to go to the guild hall."

"Too early," Natsu grumbled back, voice deep and groggy. "Not now."

Lucy let out a sigh, letting her face flop down into the mattress. It was useless—there was no way she could wake him up. The only thing he'd go after was food or a fight.

Lucy's eyes widened, and she perked up. That wasn't a half bad idea…

"Natsu, do you want some bacon? Some yummy, tasty, greasy bacon?" The girl looked expectantly at the boy.

Nothing. Not even movement. Jesus, he must really be tired—she was sure that one would work. Okay then—no worries. Time for her backup plan.

"Natsu! Help! They've got me! You've gotta help me, please!" Lucy cried, hiking her pitch up, trying to sound upset.

Instantly, the boy shot up from his spot on the ground; without hesitation he lifted his hands up into balled fists, which then burst into flames. His eyes were open—albeit exhausted—and he had dried drool on his cheek, but he was up and ready to fight. "Luce? Lucy?" He sputtered, voice still groggy.

It took him a long second to realize that _no_ , Lucy wasn't in any particular danger. Once that realization hit, he shot the girl a scowl. "That was just plain mean."

Lucy shrugged, a little smile playing on her lips. "I had to get you up."

Natsu let out a groan of exhaustion, letting his fists fall to his side; the fire evaporated from his flesh, as if it had never existed in the first place. "You're evil, you know that?"

"Come on, Natsu! I really need to get to the library!"

"For _what?_ " He replied with a pout, leaning forward and flopping onto the bed beside Lucy. It was so comfortable, and he was _so_ tired…

Lucy flicked his nose, preventing him from falling asleep again; he wrinkled it in response. "I want to go read about more colors."

Natsu put his face in the mattress; his voice was muffled when he spoke. "What's with the obsession with colors?"

She made a face, trying to think of an excuse for her in-depth research the past few days. "It's just—I don't know. Colors are interesting. I want to read about them."

"Yeah, but _this early?_ "

Lucy shrugged. "I—um. No time like the present?"

Natsu glanced up at her, his dark eyes locking onto hers; he stared at her intently for a few long seconds, as if he were trying to figure something out. After about a minute, he let out a groan of anguish, and gave in. "Fine."

"Yay!" Lucy squealed, a grin on her lips.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The walk to town was incredible.

Lucy had been utterly overwhelmed just by the color yellow—but adding another color into the mix, whatever color this was, was so much more breathtaking.

Everywhere she looked, there were colors. Flecks of the two shades in nearly everything she encountered. Grey leaves, but with flashes of yellow dotting along it. A black bird flying overhead, but its belly was a bold shade of Lucy's new, unnamed shade. Grass, trees, _people_ , even had bits of these colors etched into their skin, their hair, _everywhere_.

Lucy was utterly surprised as to how many colors were in so many things. Who would've thought that a woman with a dark shade of grey hair would have a bit of yellow streaking through her locks? Who would've thought that a wicker basket would have bits of this new color poking throughout it?

Suddenly, it made sense why color was so highly praised, so sought out. It was wonderful. She couldn't imagine ever reverting back to her grey life.

What other colors was she missing? She couldn't wait to find out.

By the time they'd made it to the library, Lucy was completely stunned. There was so much color in this world, she simply couldn't fathom it. And the library was even more impressive— _books were colorful_. Nearly every book had these two colors twisting into it's spine, coating it, lighting the space up.

And when Lucy flipped through the encyclopedia, landing on the page with her newfound color, she couldn't help but lose her breath.

 _Orange_.

She flipped through the book, flipped through the pages showing off the color orange. Pictures of fruit, of people's hair, of fabric displayed the radiant color in all of its glory. There were bright shades—neon, flashy shades of orange—and there were softer, cozier shades of it.

On the last page discussing orange was a big, two-page photograph of a sunset. Every single piece of the sky was a shade of orange, showing off the entire spectrum of the color: bright, bold neon shades closer to the horizon, while the clouds were a soft, blurry shade.

"Wow…" Lucy murmured, whispering aloud as she ran her eyes over the image. "Amazing."

Natsu was behind her, his head poking over her shoulder to look at the image as well. After a couple minutes, he lowered his chin onto her shoulder, too lazy to hold his head up himself. He watched the book as Lucy flittered through the pages, sticking only to the pages discussing the color orange. Natsu didn't say a word the entire time; he just read along, not interrupting. He seemed just as interested as Lucy was.

Once she hit the end of the _orange_ topic, Lucy continued through the book, pushing forward to other colors that she had yet to discover. Blue, green, purple, red…they were all empty words to her. She couldn't comprehend them yet, couldn't even begin to think what they looked like. But god, was she excited to learn.

Lucy flipped through the book leisurely, satisfied that she found the name of her mystery color. Now, she was just reading the names of other colors, colors that still showed up in her eyes as bleak greys, blacks and whites.

But, to Lucy's surprise, about halfway through the book, there was a section torn out.

Lucy frowned. "Some of its missing."

Natsu narrowed his eyes at the book, eyeing the ripped out portion. "Huh. That's weird."

Lucy looked at the page numbers, estimating how much was missing. She turned back to the glossary. "It's pages 113 to 120 that are missing. That's…that's a whole section on the color pink." Lucy's frown grew, and she turned back to meet Natsu's eyes. "Why would someone steal the color pink?"

The boy shrugged. "Dunno. Maybe it's a forbidden color no one's supposed to know about."

Lucy crossed her arms, confused by the missing pages. "Aren't all colors _technically_ forbidden?"

Natsu made a face. "True."

"I just don't understand…why would someone in the guild rip out a whole section?" She tapped her chin, trying to make sense of it. "Unless…someone didn't want anyone else to know about the color pink?"

His face remained relatively blank. "I think you're overthinking it, Luce."

"Maybe the color pink has a secret meaning, or something. Maybe it's a treasure map!"

Natsu rolled his eyes, lips twisting into a lopsided smirk. "Yep. Definitely overthinking it."

"Well, why do you think someone stole _pink_ then?"

Natsu leaned against the table. "Maybe someone started to see colors," He began, "And they didn't want anyone to know. So they came in here when no one else was around, stole the pages they needed to read, and fucked off."

Lucy blinked, a little astounded by his rather sound logic. "That's…actually a really good theory, Natsu!"

She eyed the boy before her, running her gaze over his thoughtful expression. He looked pensive, as if he were deep in thought; he opened his mouth to speak, hesitating for a second. Lucy blinked again, a little surprised by him. Here she was, thinking he was just kind of a funny little dork…but it turns out, he was more than that. He was thoughtful, a thinker, a—

Natsu clapped his hand on his stomach, leaned his head back and yelled, " _Natsu hungry!_ "

Lucy paused mid-thought, expression going blank. Okay, so maybe he wasn't thoughtful or pensive. Just a hungry little dork.

She sighed. "Let's go grab you some food—and then we can hit some open houses and start looking for my future apartment!"

"As long as I get some grub, I'm in."

They left the little library, leaving the encyclopedia open on the desk, and went to a nearby restaurant. Natsu was totally caught up in the delicious food, but Lucy's mind was elsewhere. The mystery of the stolen color pink plagued her: who had stolen it and why?

What was so special about the color pink? Who had taken it?

She had to know. Besides, if there was another person in the guild who had gained the ability to see colors, she wanted to talk to them about it. Maybe they could swap stories, see if their experience was similar.

Lucy nodded to herself, confirming her goals.

She _would_ find out who stole the color pink—and soon.


	7. Juvia

Lucy slumped onto the table, face squishing into the cold, hard wood. Her shoulders sagged and she let out a mighty sigh, following it up with a groan of exasperation. "Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh."

Gray, who was sitting directly across from Lucy, blinked. "What's her problem?"

Natsu spoke up, mouth full of whatever food he was currently stuffing down the hatch. "She can't find an apartment to lease."

The ice mage made a face. "Really? There were tons of ads in the paper today—there's like a hundred open houses. Have you checked there?"

Lucy started to bang her head on the wood.

The two boys watched her for a long moment, and then turned back to one another. Clearly, Lucy wasn't in the right mind to speak, so Natsu answered for her.

"She's broke, and every landlord we talked to wants _at least_ three months rent up front."

"Ah," Gray replied, leaning back in understanding. "That's a tough one. Lend her some money, Natsu."

The fire mage let out a scoff, mouth still stuffed full. "I would if I could! _Someone_ spent all of my extra funds on a bucket of raw fish." His dark eyes flashed over to the little cat seated beside him. "Isn't that right, Happy?"

Happy looked at Gray, speaking as if blowing thousands of jewel on raw fish was a justified thing. "There was a sale."

There was a little pause; Gray gave the little cat a blank stare. After a couple long seconds, the boy replied, "Right. Makes perfect sense."

"I don't want any handouts, anyways," Lucy muttered from her place on the table, not bothering to lift her head. "I want to do this the right way."

Natsu clapped his hand on her back, making her jump. "You just gotta look at the mission board!"

Lucy poked her head up a little bit, looking at the boy. "I'm not qualified for any of them—they all want experienced mages, which I definitely don't have."

Gray crossed his arms. "This is a tough one."

"You got any spare cash to give her, snowflake?"

Gray sighed. "I'm fresh out. But I could do a couple missions, maybe rake up a little dough for you."  
"No, no," Lucy butted in, shaking her head. "I can't ask you to do that. I don't want to mooch off of any of you. I already owe you all so much."

Natsu snorted. "You owe us?"

Lucy's eyes dropped shyly to her hands, fiddling with her fingers in her lap. "Well, of course I do," She murmured gently. "You all accepted me, brought me into your guild like I was one of your own…"

Gray rolled his eyes. "You don't owe us anything, Lucy."

"Yeah!" Natsu chimed in. "Besides—you're part of our family, now. That's even more reason for everyone to pitch in and help you out."

"They're right, Lucy," Happy agreed. "Everyone could help. It'd be fun!"

Natsu cocked his head to the side. "That's not a terrible idea, Happy. Everyone could pitch in, work a couple little jobs and raise some money to get Lucy her deposit!"

Lucy waved her hands in the air. "No, no—Natsu, _no_. I can't ask the guild to do that for me! Besides, barely anyone even knows my name, and—"

Apparently, the fire mage didn't care. Before Lucy could even finish her sentence, the boy had hopped up onto the table and let out a loud whistle, grabbing the entire guild's attention. He waited for a moment until everyone had turned to face him, listening to what he had to say.

"Hey, everyone! Lucy's sort of homeless right now, and she needs three month's rent just to qualify for a place. We're all gonna pitch in, do a couple jobs, and donate the proceeds to her rent fund, and—"

The girl's eyes bugged wide, and she swatted at Natsu's leg. "What are you doing?" She whispered, voice hoarse with embarrassment. "Get down from there!"

He ignored her. "—hopefully we can get her a place in a couple days! So let's all get to work for Lucy, alright?"

Lucy covered her eyes with her hands, too embarrassed to even make eye contact with her fellow guildmates. How bad did that sound? She arrives out of the blue, joins the guild and then demands her new guildmates help her pay her rent?

She wished she were invisible.

To her surprise, the guild erupted in whoops and hollers, and everyone went off to the mission board, plucking the papers off and heading over to Mira to officially sign up for them. A couple people swung by the table and patted Lucy's shoulder or back, promising her she'd have a place of her own in no time.

Natsu hopped down, taking his seat back beside Lucy. "See? Problem solved."

"I know I should thank you for doing that—but god, that was embarrassing."

Gray had a smirk on his lips. "You sure have a way with words, flamebrain."

Natsu proceeded to stuff his face, but made sure to give Lucy a toothy grin beforehand, clearly proud of himself.

"Ugh," Lucy groaned, "Let's get this over with."

* * *

To Lucy's surprise, the _entire_ guild had decided to contribute and help her out. Every single job off of the job board was taken up, with 100% of the proceeds being donated to Lucy in the hopes that she could get a nice apartment for herself.

Of course, there were far too many guild members compared to the small amount of jobs available, so people were doubling up and going in groups.

Naturally, Natsu had called dibs on Lucy as his partner, and they teamed up with Gray and Juvia for their first job. It was a simple task—help an elderly woman move her belongings from her old home to her new home—and they surely didn't need all four of them to do it, but Lucy felt obliged to take part in _something_ , especially since everyone was doing all of this for her sake.

Lucy and Juvia spent the entire afternoon chatting, talking as they items over from the old house to the new residence. Of course, the boys had insisted the girls' take the lighter items—not because they were being gentlemanly, but because they wanted to compete and figure out who could carry the heaviest item.

And so, Lucy and Juvia ended up sitting, observing as the boys struggled to carry things. They wound up just chatting, getting to know one another.

Lucy liked Juvia; she was a little eccentric and more then a little obsessed with Gray, but she was nice to talk to. Their long conversation eventually spiralled into Lucy giving Juvia tips on how to win Gray's heart—according to all of the information Lucy had absorbed from Sorcerer Weekly.

The girls were sitting at a picnic table across the street from the client's house, chatting leisurely. The sun was hot and bright, putting a beautiful yellow glow over everything below. It took all of Lucy's energy not to focus on the magnificent shades of yellow and orange laced through everything around her.

"In last year's Valentine Edition, Gray said that he liked a woman who dressed nicely."

Juvia let out a sigh. "You don't think he likes my clothes?"

"No, no, I'm sure he does!" Lucy cried, shaking her head. She glanced down at Juvia's outfit—a long, winter coat with a fur hat and fur trimmed boots. "But maybe we could go shopping and find something a bit more…summery? Show off a little skin? That'll grab his attention."

"I always thought that the way to a man's heart was through his stomach," Juvia responded, tone a little meek. "But he didn't even take a bite out of the Gray-shaped cupcake I made him!"

Lucy forced a look of surprise on her face. "You're kidding."

Juvia huffed out a sigh. "I put so much effort into them—getting his nose right took _hours_. I even got eye color _perfect_. He barely even looked at it."

Lucy opened her mouth to reply, about to spiel off some advice that she'd read in a magazine, but she paused. Her eyebrows tugged down slightly, and she frowned at the girl before her. "His eye color?"

"Yes!" Juvia replied, too wrapped up in her tragedy to realize Lucy's confusion. "Dark, but with a hint of green in them."

Lucy blinked a couple times, a little astounded. "You—you can see colors?"

Juvia paused for a moment, analyzing Lucy's expression, and then gave a nod. "Yeah."

Was Juvia the guild member who had stolen the color pink? Had Juvia been the one to frantically rip out the pages describing pink, for whatever reason?

Lucy was a little flabberghasted by the girl's honesty. For the most part, people didn't outwardly share that they'd gained the ability—it was frowned upon by too many people. "I—well— _you can?_ Since when?"

Juvia shrugged. Honestly, she had a hard time remembering that not everyone knew or saw colors—it was such a casual occurrence for her in her every day life. "Ever since I met Gray."

That seemed to set Lucy back for a second. So far, the myth was holding up—every single case file she'd read, and now even Juvia's first hand experience, all lead towards the same conclusion: technicolor vision occurred when you met your soul mate.

"Wow—okay. What was it like? What color did you see first? How'd you learn about all of the colors once you started to see them?" So many questions, so little time.

Juvia let out a little laugh, surprised by Lucy's intensity. "It was a little shocking at first," she admitted, "Because it was like one second, everything was grey. And then I saw him, and he spoke—and the next second, everything had exploded around him. It was just so sudden. All of the colors, across the spectrum, all at once."

Lucy made a face, sitting back a little bit. Darn. So, just like all of the testimonies and case files in the encyclopedia, Juvia's experience was the same: colors hit all at once, like she'd turned on a light switch.

So why was Lucy's transition into color so different? Why was hers so slow, so painfully slow?

Juvia continued on. "I went to the library looking for resources, but there was nothing around here in the public library. I ended up going to Crocus just to get my hands on a book that had all of the colors, pictures and explanations in it." She paused, letting out a little laugh. "I wasn't in the guild yet, so I didn't have access to the library. But if you're interested, there's a big book in there that is really detailed."

Lucy gave a nod. "I've been reading it."

Juvia tilted her head a bit. "Are you researching colors?"

"Well, actually, I—" Lucy began, about to tell Juvia about her random ability to see only certain colors, but she froze. It wasn't that she didn't trust Juvia with this information—she didn't really care who knew. It was just…if she truly wanted to investigate into whomever stole the color pink from that book, she'd need to remain anonymous. No one could know she was interested in the subject. And if she disclosed the truth to Juvia, that simply wouldn't be possible. So, Lucy chose against it—for now. "I just love the idea of colors. I hope one day I meet my soul mate."

Juvia nodded, smiling; her eyes drifted over to the cart filled with their client's items, watching as Gray lifted a heavy box. She let out a dreamy sigh, practically melting into a puddle where she sat. "It is quite a romantic thought."

"One more thing," Lucy asked hesitantly. "When you read the encyclopedia in the library, were any pages missing?"

Juvia replied, but her eyes didn't depart from Gray; her expression was still rather dreamy, stuck in the clouds. "No, nothing was missing."

Huh. Weird. Lucy supposed Juvia didn't really have anything to hide, especially since she gained the ability to see colors all at once. There was no purpose for her to rip out just the portion on the color pink. With a sigh, Lucy scratched Juvia's name off of her mental "who dunnit" list. Back to the drawing board.

Lucy glanced over to the cart, watching as Natsu and Gray bickered over whose box was heaviest, and then back to Juvia.

So, that was that, then. Juvia and Gray were soul mates. Who would've thought? Perhaps Juvia's obsession wasn't as crazy as everyone thought—she was just truly, completely in love.

Lucy sat back, her cheeks feeling a bit warm. It was a sweet thought, the idea of meeting your soul mate and being struck with absolute love and adoration. She honestly couldn't blame Juvia for her obsessive tendencies—she was just head over heels.

It was cute.

The boys wrapped up their deliveries—they'd had to settle on a tie; no one could tell whose box was heavier—and the group headed back to the guild hall to see the guild's progress.

To Lucy's shock, the guild was completely out of work—everyone had cooperated and worked together and completed every job below an S class rank that was available. They'd raised well over three months rent for Lucy—in fact, she'd have just about six months of rent covered with the funds.

Everyone gave Lucy a cheer as she walked in the door, happy that they could give her this gift. Mira gave Lucy a big hug, saying that the money was Fairy Tail's welcoming gift to her.

Lucy stood on a table, trying to say a thank you to the guild that had done this for her. But, as she looked around, staring at the faces smiling up at her, she felt her throat get thick and heavy. She tried to regain her composure, tried to hold back the tears she could feel working their way to the forefront.

But she looked ahead and saw Natsu. He met her gaze and gave her a grin and a wink. And for whatever reason, that was what broke her composure completely. She gave into her emotions, unable to hold the tears back; sobs burst out of her, and she ducked her head, wiping the wetness from her cheeks.

She'd been lonely for so long, been alone for so many years—but now, she'd found a family that took care of her. She had friends that were willing to help her despite not knowing her for long; she had people that wanted the best for her, wanted her to be okay.

Lucy had found her place, found her home, found the friends she was meant to have.

She'd found Natsu—or more correctly, Natsu had found her. He'd taken her in, brought her to his home, introduced her to his family. He'd stood up for her, taken care of her even when she insisted he didn't. Really, she owed everything to him,

Lucy had found color and adventure and Natsu, and that's really all that she could ask for.

So, there she was, standing on a table, absolutely bawling in front of her new family. And that was fine, honestly. She didn't care. Because this was where she belonged.

The crowd was quiet, watching Lucy have her very public breakdown. It took a few minutes, but Natsu squeezed his way through the crowd, pushing his way up to the table that Lucy was standing on.

And with a big, beaming grin on his lips, he offered Lucy his hand. "C'mon, Luce—don't cry. Let's be happy."

Lucy blinked at him, staring at his big hand for a long moment. And then, wiping the tears from her cheeks, she put her little hand in his giant palm, putting her trust in him completely.

She decided, then and there, that she would follow Natsu wherever he led her.

* * *

 _ **A/N:** **Hi readers!**_ _**Forgive me for the short chapter-I'm just trying to figure out how to include everything properly.**_ I _ **know I left this story untouched for so long, but now that school is over and I have some free time I wanted to finish this! I know I said this was going to be a relatively short story (I had first intended it to be only about 8 or 9 chapters) but the more I write, the more details I want to include! I'm guessing right now that this story will end up closer to 15 chapters, maybe more? I hope that's okay. Let me know if this is a bad idea.**_

 _ **And PLEASE leave a review or a comment on things so far! Reviews really are the only thing that motivate me to write, and it's so disheartening to see a single review left after I post three new chapters. Please, please, please, if you like even a single thing about this story, please tell me. I need some reader love to keep me going! Thank you for all the support!**_


	8. Home

Lucy stepped into the apartment, eyes flashing up and over every feature, trying to breathe in the vibe of the place. Immediately, her cheerful expression fell apart into something much more gloomy; her lips turned downwards as her shoulders began to sag.

It was the third apartment they'd viewed that day, and so far, everything had been completely awful. This particular residence was no different—everything was…well, rather ugly.

Lucy's eyes widened as she glanced around the place, her friends—Natsu, Happy, Gray, Erza and Juvia—bustling in behind her, out of breath trying to catch up to the girl. Everything about this apartment was _wrong_ , the exact opposite of what Lucy was looking for.

The carpets were drab and dreary, looking as though just about every substance known to man had been spilled on them; in the far corner was a dark stain, oddly similar to the shape of a human body. Lucy cringed. Had this been the location of a murder scene?

The rest of the place was no better. The wallpaper was the ugliest shade of yellow Lucy had ever seen—so far, she'd only been mesmerized by the beauty of color; this was the first time it had disgusted her—and was peeling off of the drywall. There was a strange aroma in the air, sort of like something had died, and it clung to her skin. The place just felt grimy—it needed to be knocked down.

It was a real shame, considering how cute and quaint the outside of the building had been. Lucy had been so excited, she'd run in, leaving her friends behind; they'd just caught up, dashing up the stairs behind her, all out of breath.

Natsu took one step into the place and grimaced. "Oh, Jesus fucking Christ," He hissed under his breath, appalled by the sight before him. "Yikes."

Gray seemed confused. "They want _how much_ a month for rent? This has to be a joke."

Erza crossed her arms, not impressed. "This place should be set on fire. Natsu, you should torch it."

Happy, for the first time since Lucy had met him, was speechless.

Juvia seemed more concerned about Lucy; she peered at her new friend, finger curling up at her lip with concern. "Oh, dear."

Lucy let out a disappointed sigh, letting her gaze drop from the ugly wallpaper. Trying to keep herself from falling into utter despair, Lucy sucked in a breath and then turned, looking at her friends. "Guess this place is a no go, huh?"

Natsu's expression appeared to be permanently etched into a grimace. "Stinks in here."

With a sigh, Lucy's shoulders slouched. She took a few steps back towards the door, shuffling past her friends, who were still staring at the lousy apartment in utter shock. "Maybe we should just call it quits." She murmured. "Maybe there's no point in even looking."

"Hey—don't give up so easily," Gray urged, giving Lucy's shoulder a pat. "We'll find you a place. We've just gotta keep looking."

She didn't seem to be listening. "Maybe I should just settle, take this place. Everything seems to be on this level of quality—what if there's nothing better available?"

Natsu's eyes widened, and his big hands grabbed both of her arms gently; he turned her to face him, squaring her up with him. "Luce—there is _no way_ I'm gonna let you live in a dump like this."

Lucy's voice was quiet, meek. "Why?"

The boy glanced around—the way the light refracted on his odd grey hair made Lucy's eyes hurt a little—and then turned back to her. "Pretty sure this was previously a meth lab. And if I'm not mistaken, that's an old blood stain on the floor. If you live here, I think you'll die."

"But there's nothing else in my price range! Everything else is almost triple what I've got—and god knows I won't be able to keep up paying that kind of rent forever. And I refuse to ask the guild to help me out _yet again_." Lucy closed her eyes, exasperated. "Maybe I should just live on the street—find a nice box and call it home."

Natsu snorted, rolling his eyes. "Don't be such a drama queen. I'll find you a place."

"But I've looked, Natsu. There's nothing I can afford."

"We'll find a place—just let me do the talking, alright?" He smirked, his eyes twinkling.

Lucy blinked up at him. "Fine, fine," She muttered. She was completely out of options—if Natsu thought he could find her a nice place somehow, she was all for it. Especially if it was affordable.

Natsu's smirk grew mischievously. " _Great_."

* * *

Natsu stood over the landlord's seat, fists ablaze with bright orange flames. "And _how much_ is the rent going to be for my good friend Lucy?"

The landlord blinked at the boy, bullets of sweat working down his balding head. "I—well, um—only 80,000 jewel—for you."

A wide, sinister smile split across Natsu's lips. "That's right. And how soon can my friend move in?"

The landlord flinched back into his chair more, desperate to get away from the fiery flames exploding from the teen's fist. "Tomorrow! Today! As soon as possible!"

Natsu pushed his fist closer to the man's cheek, increasing the heat spilling over from his skin. "And we have no problems here, do we? You're going to treat my friend nicely?"

"Y-Yes sir, like an exclusive guest, sir."

Natsu stood back, his sinister smile instantly turning itself into a sweet one. The flames that were roaring from his flesh were gone instantly, as if they'd never been there in the first place. "Good. I'm glad we could come to an agreement." Natsu turned, glancing back at his friends standing in the corner. "Luce—come sign the lease agreement."

Lucy stood there for a long second, blinking at the boy.

After that last dingy apartment, Natsu had led the group towards a rather fancy neighborhood along the canal right in the middle of town. Lucy had argued against it—there was no way she could afford anything in this neighborhood!—but Natsu hadn't listened. Instead, he'd barged his way up to the leasing agent's office and instantly begun to threaten him.

It was a whole side of Natsu that Lucy had even known existed. It was like one second he was this sweet, caring guy—and the next, he was a wild animal. Everything about his body language had been animalistic, angry, rough—the opposite of his normal demeanor.

Lucy swallowed, a thick lump caught in her throat. To be honest, even from way back here, she'd felt the heat of his flames, and _yeah_ , it had been pretty intimidating. Of course, having him on her side only made her feel more lucky. "Um—right." She walked over to the desk and took a seat across from the landlord.

The landlord was absolutely soaked with sweat; he was shaking and breathing heavily. He seemed rather relieved to be dealing directly with Lucy now, rather than Natsu.

Lucy signed off on the agreement; everything went smoothly. Of course, she had yet to even take a look at the apartments in this building, but she knew it didn't matter—anything in this neighborhood was practically living in the lap of luxury. She'd be lucky to have any apartment in this building.

Once all of the documents had been signed, the landlord handed over the keys—shakily, of course—to Lucy. The gang all stood, ready to go and take their first look at Lucy's new place.

"Just a sec," Gray mumbled before they left the doors.

He made his way over to the landlord, who immediately began to beg for mercy.

"Please, please don't—your other friend made everything perfectly clear, I don't want any trouble, I will gladly give Miss Lucy an apartment at a steep discount—just _please_ don't hurt me." The man had begun to sweat again.

Gray held out his palm, forming a little chunk of ice in his hand; he took it with his other hand and offered it to the landlord. As Gray extended his arm, the landlord jumped and cringed away, assuming he was about to be threatened again.

Gray blinked at the man. "You might want to hold this on your cheek," He offered. "To ease the burn."

The landlord seemed surprised; he shakily grabbed the chunk of ice and held it against his left cheek, pressing it into the spot where Natsu's flames had gotten a little _too_ close. "T-Thank you."

Gray gave him a smile and a wave as he headed back to the doorway, catching up with the rest of the group.

"How gentlemanly!" Juvia cried, her voice fading into that dream-like tone. "That was so sweet of you, Gray! My heart is melting."

Gray rolled his eyes, annoyed by Juvia's comments, like usual. "Whatever, Juvia." He strode past the girl, speeding up to catch up to Natsu at the front of the pack.

Erza, who was walking beside Lucy, let out a sigh. "He shouldn't treat you like that, Juvia. You deserve better."

Juvia's gaze had fallen to her feet, the corners of her lips tugging downwards. As much as she tried to pretend Gray's rejection didn't sting, it hurt her to her very core. It wasn't easy being in love with someone so completely, without even a hint of love in return. "Yeah."

Lucy's eyebrows had tugged together slightly, feeling bad for her friend.

But something about the entire encounter bothered her. Juvia and Gray were soul mates, right? They'd met, and Juvia had been struck by colors—Gray should've been, too. If this were true…then why was Gray so cold to her? Why wasn't he just as overwhelmed with love and affection like she was?

It didn't seem to make sense. Out of all of the stories Lucy had read about people gaining the ability to see colors and finding their soul mate, everyone had talked about this overwhelming sense of love for the other person. But Gray didn't seem to have that with Juvia. Was he hiding it? Was he pretending he hadn't noticed it as well? Was he not ready to face feelings that deep, that sincere?

The thoughts plagued Lucy. She hated being confused about things—she'd have to figure it out.

Caught up in her thoughts, Lucy hadn't realized that all of her friends had stopped moving; still taking steps forward, Lucy slammed into Natsu's back, her head cracking against his shoulder.

"Gah!" Lucy cried out in surprise.

Natsu snorted. "Jesus, Luce. Get your shit together."

She rubbed her temple. "Sorry, sorry—just a little preoccupied."

Erza seemed concerned. "Are you feeling okay, Lucy?"

"Yeah, I'm fine—just a little overwhelmed, is all." She glanced up, now understanding why all of her friends had stopped in their tracks: they were outside of her new apartment, room 313. Lucy fiddled with the keys to her new place, a little nervous. What if it was gross inside, too? What if it wasn't perfect.

Erza gave Lucy a strong smile and a nod; her confidence seemed to ease Lucy, make everything seem not so bad. "No need to be overwhelmed. You've got us to help you."

Natsu gave her a little grin. "There's nothin' to be afraid of."

A little smile touched at Lucy's lips, and she put the key in the door, turning it. Closing her eyes, she pushed open the door, a little nervous to reveal what was behind it. She stepped in, and peeked out of her left eye, afraid of what was before her.

But, as Natsu had said, there was nothing to be afraid of.

The place was beautiful. Not massive, but just the right size for her. The finished were all wonderful, and there was a little desk right by the window for her to write her novels on, and the couch was nice and cozy looking, and everything was perfect.

The walls were a soft shade of yellow—honestly, Lucy's favorite color she'd seen so far—and made the entire apartment feel welcoming. It was bright and open and airy, and Lucy couldn't have picked a better apartment.

All of her friends seemed to think the same thing; they couldn't help but smile as they walked into the space.

Natsu spun to look at Lucy. "What'd I tell ya, Luce? When I do the talking, everything turns out great."

Lucy's cheeks were hot, and she gave him a smile. "You're right—I shouldn't have doubted you."

"C'mon, lemme hear it."

She frowned. "Hear what?"

Natsu smirked. "A sincere _thank you, Natsu, you're the best friend in the whole wide world and I owe you my life_."

Lucy rolled her eyes, but went through with it anyways. After all, he _did_ make this possible—hell, he'd even threatened a man just so that Lucy could have a nice home. That was friendship. "Ugh, fine. Thank you, Natsu, you're the best friend in the whole wide world and I owe you my life." Lucy paused for a second, then added, "And I'll buy you a nice meal just as an extra thanks."

Natsu's eyes widened. "Food?"

"You heard me."

He dove at her, wrapping his arms around her waist tightly; he squeezed her, lifting her up off of the ground. "You're the best, Luce!"

Natsu was smiling so wide that she could feel his cute little cheeks press up against hers when they hugged; happiness bubbled out of her, her cheeks getting hot. "Thank you for everything, Natsu."

By the time he'd plopped her back down onto her feet, their other friends had begun searching the apartment, calling out compliments for everything they could see.

"This tub is _amazing_!" Juvia had cried from the bathroom; Lucy ran over quickly to lay her eyes on her new clawfoot soaker.

"Your kitchen is _huge!_ " Happy cried, satisfied with the thought of Lucy preparing him a nice dinner in her new chef's kitchen.

"The bedroom is gorgeous!" Erza had cried from another room. "The bedding is quite pretty."

Lucy made her way to the bedroom, surprised to find Erza already flopped stomach first onto her new bed. She giggled, snorting at her pal. She ran her eyes over the bedding, frowning at it. "I don't know about the bedding being pretty—it's quite plain."

The bedding wasn't anything special—just a dreary grey duvet cover. There weren't any patterns on it at all.

Erza frowned, peering down at the blankets she was laying on; after a second, her frown faded away. "Oh—I forgot. It's the color. It's a very pretty lavender."

Lucy cocked her head to the side. "Y-You can see colors?"

Erza sat up on the bed. "Yeah." Her answer was so plain and straightforward, Lucy felt silly for even questioning it.

Lucy's mind was racing. In two days, she'd met two other people who had the ability to see colors—and they'd both spilled the beans with little to no resistance. It was so… _odd_. It wasn't the norm. It wasn't weird for this sort of thing to be kept a secret, even for a person's entire lifetime. It wasn't something you shared with the public so effortlessly.

But, maybe she was wrong. Maybe she'd just grown up in a society that had taught her not to tell others. But Juvia hadn't had an issue with telling Lucy, and now Erza hadn't held back at all. Maybe it wasn't odd to share this.

"Since when?" Lucy pressed, going to sit beside Erza on the bed. "How quickly did you get them? What was the first color you saw?"

"Oh," Erza murmured, leaning back, glancing up at the roof as she thought. "I guess I gained the ability when I was a kid—really, for as long as I can remember. I vaguely remember living in a grey world beforehand, and then all of a sudden everything was color, but…" She paused for a moment. "I'm not sure when I got it. Around age six, I guess?"

Age six? People went their entire lives living in a grey wasteland, and Erza had received this ability when she was _six?_

"Do you remember what spurred you to gain the ability?"

Erza shrugged, not shy about this topic in the least. "When I met Jellal."

"Whose Jellal?"

Erza opened her mouth to reply, but she was interrupted by a voice in the doorway. Natsu was leaning against the doorframe, a goofy grin on his lips. "Jellal's her _boyfriend_ ," He answered with a laugh. He then proceeded to turn, wrapping his arms around himself; he made kissing noises, making it look like he was making out with someone.

Erza's voice was sharp. "Cut it out, Natsu," She growled. When she turned back to Lucy, her expression had returned to a pleasant look. "He's not my boyfriend. We're just friends."

Just friends? Lucy narrowed her eyes. "Would you describe Jellal as your…soul mate?"

Erza blinked, then nodded. "Yeah. We were definitely meant to meet."

Natsu had refrained from the kissy noises and turned back to the girls' conversation. "Erza and Jellal, sittin' in a tree. G. First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes—"

Erza stood, hands balled into fists. Lucy recognized the dark shade of grey on Erza's cheeks as a hot blush. "Say it and you die, boy."

Natsu continued, not intimidated by Erza's threats. "—a baby in a baby carriage."

"That's it!" Erza snapped talking a step towards Natsu.

His face had contorted into a look of mischief, one that reminded Lucy of a child. "Just admit it, you love the guy. That's all I want."

Erza rolled up her sleeves. "I'm gonna kill you, right here, right now." She ran over to Natsu and wrapped her hand around his throat, far too fast for him to dodge the attack. She dragged the boy by the throat out of the bedroom, choking him as she did so.

Lucy made a face. "Don't get any Natsu blood on my new floors!"

With a sigh, she slumped back, confused by all of this information. So, even Erza's experience withheld the standard: the colors hit her all at once, when she met her soul mate.

Was Lucy the only one to not undergo this kind of process? Why were her colors only coming in one at a time, appearing rather randomly? It didn't make sense.

And, adding even more confusion into Lucy's brain was the fact that she _still_ didn't have any clues as to who stole the color pink from the library's encyclopedia. It didn't make sense for Erza or Juvia to take it—they'd gotten their technicolor sight all at once, and they had the resources to learn about it elsewhere. Not only that, but they were both fairly open with the fact that they could see colors—there was no motive for them to rip the pages out of the book so hastily.

It had been a couple days, and she had zero leads about the stolen pages.

Still, she was determined. Her childhood dream of being Nancy Drew was kicking into high gear. The only way she would ever find out who stole the color pink was if she put all her effort into the case.

But she couldn't do this task on her own—she'd need some assistance. Someone who was smart, could connect the dots without her aid. Someone who was just as much of a sleuth as she was.

Lucy smiled to herself, already knowing who she would ask for help.

 _Levy_ _McGarden._


	9. Levy and Lucy: Women of Mystery

"So, let me just get this straight," Levy began, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose slightly. She leaned forward in her seat, her back peeling away from her chair as she did so. She rested her arm on the table, her elbow nudging the encyclopedia on the table. " _Someone_ tore some pages out of the book. And those pages retain information _solely_ on the color pink. Is that correct?"

Lucy nodded, a strange fierceness in her expression. She'd been confused about this mystery for far too long, and she was really itching to figure it out.

Not only was having an unsolved mystery really bothersome mentally, but Lucy wanted to talk to whomever stole the book pages about their experience with visualizing colors. She'd already jumped to the conclusion that anyone willing to steal only a _portion_ of the book was probably only seeing that specific color—and that meant something. If someone else was having the same issue as her, gaining this ability slowly…well, she wanted to talk to them about it. Maybe they had something in common, something that would help her make sense of her own situation.

"Correct," She replied, eyes locked with Levy's.

"And we have absolutely no leads as to who took it?"

"Well," Lucy huffed out with a sigh, "I _had_ two leads—but I don't think it was them."

Levy cocked her head to the side slightly. "Why not?"

"I found out both Juvia and Erza have the ability to see color," Lucy explained, "But it doesn't add up with our theory. They both gained the ability abruptly, the second they encountered their soul mate. Not only that, but they were incredibly honest about it. They didn't really have anything to hide."

Levy tapped her chin, deep in thought. "I see what you mean. If they gained the ability to see every color all at once, why only steal the portion on the color pink?" She paused, eyebrows tugging down as she began to focus. "And if they were relatively honest about it, there would be no reason to steal _any_ information—no need to hide it."

"Those were my thoughts exactly."

"I'm still a little confused on your theory, though," Levy murmured, chewing on the inside of her cheek a little. " _Everyone_ gets their colors all at once. Why would anyone steal _just_ the color pink?"

Lucy blinked, a little caught off guard. "It's just the only way I could make sense of it—only seeing one color is the only explanation for _that_ portion of the book being stolen. It probably doesn't exist, but what other reason could there be?" She prayed to the gods that Levy didn't notice her absolute reach for an excuse.

Levy's frown lingered on her expression for a little bit longer, but it broke down into an excited grin the second she made eye contact with Lucy. "Hm. I get it. I can see why you needed help—thanks so much for asking me! This is interesting!"

Lucy gave a shy grin back. "No problem—I figured you'd be interested. Whenever I read Sorcerer Weekly, they always mentioned how you were reading some mystery novel. I had a gut feeling you'd like to help solve the mystery."

"Of course! But, I do have to ask one thing—why do you want to find the culprit so badly?"

Lucy's heartrate quickened. "What do you mean?"

"Well, it's an interesting case and all, but it really doesn't hold any importance. So part of the book is gone—big whoop. Why the determination to catch whoever did it?"

"Well, I…" Lucy trailed off, her throat thick with the shock of Levy's questions. Really, she should've been more prepared—she was talking to the smartest girl in the guild. She'd figure it out in no time. "Um…."

Lucy could've spilled the beans right then and there, and it wouldn't have been an issue. She could've told Levy about her predicament, about her problems—hell, maybe Levy even knew the answer to her questions. Maybe she'd read some research paper about it before.

But Lucy had been raised her entire life, told never to speak about colors and who could see them and who couldn't. It was all hush-hush, not something to be discussed. If you ever gained the ability, you shared it only to your close friends and family—it wasn't something to broadcast. If you did, the non-believers would have you wrung out…

"I just think there should be some form of justice, is all. Someone destroyed that ancient book. It's not right."

Levy analyzed the new guild member's face for a second longer, then gave a nod. It was fairly clear that Levy knew there was more going on behind the scenes, but she chose not to question it, much to Lucy's relief.

She wasn't ready to tell anyone yet. It just…it wasn't the right moment.

"Right. Well, let's start thinking of possible perps. Got any ideas?"

Lucy perked up slightly. "Well—one. Sort of. It's Gray."

Levy made a face. "Gray?"

"Well, you know how all of the stories go: soul mates meet, both can feel something special about one another, and _bam_! Both can see colors."

"Right, sure."

Lucy continued on with her theory. "Juvia fell for Gray—the second they met, she could see every color on the spectrum. But Gray doesn't exactly treat Juvia like he's in love with her, y'know? I thought maybe it was because he was confused."

Levy was nodding, now. "And he's probably confused because he's only seeing one color. Great catch, Lucy! You're really good at this!"

Lucy shrugged. "Well, we'll see if my theory is even right."

"How exactly do we find out? We can't just walk up to him and demand answers—he's too stubborn to just give us the info."

Lucy clapped her hands together, rubbing them mischievously. "Isn't it obvious? We do some research. Talk to his friends, who he's close with. And if nothing crops up, we snoop."

Levy pushed her glasses up. "Oh, I am _so_ into this."

So, off they went, quickly bonding over their mutual love for Nancy Drew and mystery novels, leaving the incomplete encyclopedia alone on the library table.

* * *

"And how do you know Gray Fullbuster?" Levy asked, voice prim and proper, turning her gaze up at the person seated before them.

The girls had asked Mirajane if they could use the supply closet as an interview space for something important; she'd happily obliged, wishing them luck on whatever they were doing. They'd set up chairs in the closet, gotten pens and notepads, and made a checklist of everyone Gray talked to on a daily basis at the guild.

Next, they'd gone out and bought new outfits. If they were going to play Nancy Drew, they might as well look the part. Fancy, sophisticated, classy lawyer outfits hugged their curves perfectly, making them even more intimidating to their interviewee—or so they'd hoped.

They both turned their gazes on the person sitting directly across from them, expressions calculated and cold. They meant business.

"Um—are you fucking kidding me?"

Lucy's shoulders sagged; she rolled her eyes. "Just answer the question, Natsu!"

He slumped in his seat, trying to get comfortable. "Yeesh, fine, fine. I don't know what the hell you two are up to, but it's weird as hell."

Lucy shot him a glare. "Answer the question."

The boy let out a groan, rolling his eyes. "I've known him for years—ever since I showed up at the guild."

Levy glanced down at her notebook, reading off the next question on the list; Lucy jotted down notes about his answer.

"Would you say you two are close?"

Natsu opened his mouth, about to protest the idiocy of these questions, but he noticed Lucy's expression twist into a look of rage. He took a moment, wiping the annoyed look off of his face, letting out a sigh. Guess he'd have to play along if he didn't want to die in the supply closet. "Eh, not really."

Levy made a face, annoyed. She dropped her notebook to her lap. "Natsu, you and Gray are best friends!"

"Dude's a prick."

Levy groaned. "Can we just pretend you guys _don't_ bicker, so we can get through these questions?"

Natsu crossed his arms. "Fine, fine. Ask away. I'll play your little game." His eyes flickered over to Lucy. "Even if it _is_ super stupid."

Lucy stuck her tongue out. "Meanie."

Levy cleared her throat, returning to their predetermined questions. "Have you ever heard Gray mention anything about seeing colors?"

Natsu tipped his head back, thinking. "Nah—we don't really talk about that kind of stuff. We just fight and wrestle and shit."

"Have you ever overheard him say something about colors—accidentally?" Lucy pressed further, desperate to get _any_ kind of leads on their number one suspect.

Natsu shrugged. "No." His head tipped to the side a little. "Sorry, Luce."

She sighed, glancing over to her detective partner, giving her the nod. Levy stood, making her way over to Natsu's seat and unlocked the magic handcuffs that they'd forced around his wrists, preventing him from using any magic or force to escape their interview. "It's alright, Natsu. Thanks for trying."

He stood, rubbing his wrists. "Those things hurt—you guys are taking this _way_ too far." He paused. "By the way, what's the point of it? Why the interrogation about Gray?"

Lucy stood, taking a step towards him, a sly smile on her lips. "Confidential. Sorry, Natsu."

She watched his lips slowly twist up into that amused little smirk he always flashed her, his eyes running over her face with curiosity.

"Ah, well. Good luck in whatever this is."

Levy gave a little wave, herding him out of the room, closing the door behind him. She spun on her heels, turning to look at Lucy, a stern look in her eye. "Next candidate?"

Lucy nodded, as serious as ever. "Next candidate."

* * *

Lucy's eyes widened at the sight before her, too shocked to say a word.

"Tighter, Levy. No— _tighter_. If you want to disarm an opponent with these, you need to have it snug around the wrists. Ah—there you go. See how it's squishing my skin a little? That's how you know it's on properly." There was a pause as Levy grunted, locking the magical handcuffs in place. "Perfect. Executed very well."

Levy plopped back down in her seat beside Lucy, a little out of breath from her athletic rendezvous trying to tighten the cuffs properly. "Whoof. Yeesh. Okay. Let's get started."

Lucy frowned, a little concerned, as she looked at their next interviewee. "Erza, aren't those things a little _too_ tight? Your hands are turning grey."

"That's good—if they aren't tight enough, you'd never stop your captive from accessing their magic powers." She paused for a second, lips twisting into a smile. "Besides, it doesn't hurt. I like being tied up."

Levy's eyes widened, and she turned to her page. "Jesus, okay. Um, Erza, are you and Gray Fullbuster close?"

Erza deliberated on that for a moment. "Yes, I'd say so. We go on missions together often."

Lucy leaned in slightly, resting her elbow on her knee. "Have you ever talked to him about colors?"

The captive nodded. "Yes—he asked me a couple questions when I told him that I could see color."

"How long ago was this?"

Erza shrugged. "Years. We were children."

Lucy frowned. Darn. "Have you spoken to him about colors recently?"

"No, not at all."

Levy's voice was strained, annoyed by the lack of leads. "Have you ever overheard him talking about colors? Perhaps he mentioned something accidentally?"

"I'm afraid not," Erza said, honest and straightforward. "He's never seemed very interested in the concept of color or attaining technicolor sight—even as a child, he thought it was stupid."

Lucy leaned back, making eye contact with her partner. "Interesting. Okay. Thank you, Erza. You've given us a little bit to think about."

This time, Lucy went and unclamped the cuffs from Erza's wrists; she let out a gasp once she realized how little blood had been flowing to the girl's extremities. Her fingers were a dark grey, completely void of blood. "Oh my god, Erza—do they feel okay?"

Erza stood, pushing her hair back over her shoulder, her lips working their way into a smile. "This is nothing, Lucy. Trust me. I've had worse."

And out the door she went, leaving the two girls utterly stunned.

Lucy shook her head, mumbling under her breath, "Jellal's gotta be a freak in the sheets to handle her."

"Well—that was a little something, right?" Levy asked, eyes brightening a little with hope. "I mean, a little bit of information about Gray's discomfort with the idea of colors. Definitely gives him a motive to steal from the book! Perhaps he didn't want to acknowledge the fact that he'd gained the ability to see, but wanted to learn more?"

Lucy nodded. "That's what I'm thinking."

Her fellow detective glanced down at their sheet of possible interviewees. "Only one more to go."

Lucy plopped down in her chair, fixing herself back into her sophisticated position as Levy went out to fetch the next person. "Bring 'em in!"

* * *

Lucy's eyes narrowed at the person sitting directly across from her, searching their face.

Gajeel Redfox.

His body language said it all: he was sitting in his chair stiffly, glancing around the room nervously. Bullets of sweat were working their way down his forehead, around his cheeks and inevitably dripping off of his chin. He kept shifting around in his seat, unable to make eye contact with either of the two girls before him.

Lucy crossed her arms, glancing over to Levy and murmuring under her breath, "He's hiding something. Something big. Look at him—he reeks of suspicion."

Levy gave a little nod in response, agreeing. She turned to her notepad, clearing her throat. "So, Gajeel, how well do you know Gray Fullbuster?"

Gajeel's voice cried out immediately afterwards, rough and gravelly. "I won't spill! Never! I've got a will of steel, you hear me, half pint?" His eyes were locked on Levy.

Lucy blinked back, surprised. Well, that was a passionate response. She glanced over at Levy.

Levy's cheeks were tinged with grey, the blood beginning to rush up to her head, making her hot. "Listen, Gajeel—we just need you to answer a few simple questions. That's all. And then you are free to go."

"Get these cuffs off of me! I'm innocent! I'm an innocent man!"

Lucy narrowed her eyes. "You're not _acting_ innocent."

"I've been framed!"

Levy slammed her notebook down. " _How well do you know Gray Fullbuster?_ "

"I'm not blabbing!"

" _Tell me!_ " Levy demanded, eyes wild. "Or God help me—"

That seemed to break him. "Okay, fine, I give, I give."

A smirk washed across Levy's features. She broke him, all by herself.

The boy let out a heavy breath, eyes on the ground. "The truth is…" He trailed off, pausing for a long few seconds, as if he were deliberating confessing something huge. "I don't know him very well at all."

Lucy made a face. "Then what's with all the drama? You could've said that five minutes ago!"

"You guys were makin' me nervous! You put _cuffs_ on me!" Gajeel glanced down at his wrists sadly, then back up to Levy. "You don't put a guy who came from a dark guild in _cuffs_."

"You've gotta be kidding me," Lucy grumbled under her breath.

"So," Levy continued, staying on track. "You don't know him?"

Gajeel shrugged. "Eh, not really. He's good for a fight, but that's about it."

"Have you ever overheard him talking about colors, or anything related to that?"

His voice was gruff as he replied. "Nah, shrimp. Can't say I have."

Levy's eyes narrowed. " _Don't_ call me that."

"I'll call you whatever I please, half pint."

She crossed her arms. "Gajeel!"

Seeing Levy frustrated seemed to please him; there was a curious little twinkle in his eye and a smirk on his lips. "How're you gonna stop me, squirt?"

A small little growl erupted from Levy's throat, and she rolled her eyes; she crossed her legs, annoyed. "Ugh. Just shut up, okay? Let him go, Lucy. He's never going to help."

Gajeel's smirk grew. "Aw, c'mon pipsqueak—I'll be on my very best behaviour."

Levy shot a scowl in his direction, then nodded at Lucy.

Lucy understood; she made her way over the boy and unlocked the magic handcuffs, freeing him. He seemed pleased; he rubbed his wrists, standing and making his way over to the door.

Before he left, he gave a wave over his shoulder, not bothering to look back. "Seeya later, shrimp."

Lucy closed the door, glancing back at her friend. "Sheesh. Bit tense between you two, isn't it?"

Levy just rolled her eyes, expression unhappy. "That guy…he's such a jerk." She let out a breath, tainted with annoyance. "Let's move on."

"Maybe we should just skip all of this nonsense, head straight to the source."

Eyes wide, Levy turned to Lucy. "Are you sure? You wanna go _all in_?"

Lucy shrugged. "Might as well. We're not getting anything from these idiots."

"Fair enough," Levy agreed with a nod. "Let's do this thing."

* * *

"You know, if there were authorities present, you two weirdos would be in a _lot_ of trouble."

Lucy glanced up from her notebook, eyes landing on the subject before her—their sole suspect. The only lead they'd gotten from this entire case about the stolen pages. The only person there was left to question.

Gray Fullbuster.

The girls didn't waste any time with niceties—they got straight to business, not wasting any of their precious time. They had places to go, people to see, mysteries to solve.

Levy slammed her notebook to the ground; it hit the floor with a loud _crack_ , making Gray jump in his seat. "Can you see colors?" Levy demanded, kicking her chair back and stepping towards the suspect. She got right up in his grill, getting up in his personal space. Before he even had the chance to respond, she yelled out the question at him again, making him jump with every syllable. " _Answer me, maggot! Can you see colors or not?_ "

Gray flinched at the girl's loud yelling in his ear. He would've covered his ears, if his wrists weren't completely and utterly locked up in a pair of magic handcuffs. "Ah—what the fuck? What the fuck is going on? Have you two completely lost your minds?"

Lucy leaned back in her seat, fiddling with her hair. When she spoke, her tone was casual. Cool. "Here's the deal, bucko—you can answer my friend here and make this easy for us, or you can make this difficult. And what's being difficult do, Levy?"

Levy was striding around Gray's chair, making laps around him. "It pisses us off," She snarled.

"And what happens when we're pissed off?" Lucy asked again.

Levy got up in his face again, shouting. "We _hurt_ things!"

Lucy continued to play with her hair, playing it cool.

Good cop bad cop. It always worked. At least, on TV it did.

"Ow—fuck! Okay, what do you want? Shit."

"Answer the question, Gray," Lucy murmured. "Or my friend here is going to make you feel pain."

Levy cracked her knuckles.

Gray shook his head. "You two have taken this too far."

"One more chance, Gray," Lucy whispered. "Can you see colors?"

"That's what you wanna know? The fuck? No—no, I can't see colors. Can I go now?"

"Liar!" Levy shouted.

"I'm not lying!" Gray shouted back, confused by everything that was going on right now. "Why would I lie?"

Lucy frowned, seeing the sincerity in his tone. "So…you've never been able to see colors? Not ever?"

Gray met her gaze, confusion and fear and annoyance in his eyes. "No, never. Why?"

Lucy's face crumbled down even further as she realized that their sole suspect was in fact innocent. He wasn't lying. She could tell, just by the look on his face. He couldn't see colors. He hadn't met his soul mate. "Oh."

Gray pressed on, looking to Levy this time—although her expression was oddly similar to Lucy's. "Why?"

"It's nothing," Lucy mumbled, far too caught up in her thoughts to half-ass an explanation to the boy. "Levy, let him go."

Nothing made sense about this. If it wasn't Gray…well, it could be _anybody_. There were hundreds, if not thousands, of people in the guild. Just about anyone could've made their way into that library and stolen those pages. Perhaps Lucy would never know who'd taken them. It was just another unsolved mystery.

Not only was the disappointment from the case weighing on her, but the truth of Gray's words put a heavy weight on her heart.

Gray couldn't see color. He hadn't met his soul mate. But Juvia…Juvia had met hers.

For the first time, it dawned on Lucy that soul mates weren't always reciprocated. Just because someone was your soul mate, your _person_ —that didn't mean you ended up with them.

It was a sad thought, one that made Lucy's heart ache. A small part of her began to worry that the same was happening to her. Would her soul mate feel the same way? Would the sight of her light up their skies with vibrancy?

The world, as beautiful as it was, wasn't fair. Not for everyone.

Levy tugged the handcuffs off of Gray, and he immediately bolted out the door, mumbling under his breath that the two girls were 'crazy as shit'. Normally, Lucy would've shot something back, but she felt too glum to even attempt to.

The world _wasn't_ fair. Not all soul mates reciprocated, and not all mysteries got solved.

Levy and Lucy turned to each other, both too dispirited and dejected to pursue their mystery any further that day.


	10. Smudges

Levy fidgeted in her seat, letting out a huff of impatience and annoyance; she crossed her legs, and then a moment later, uncrossed them again. She leaned back, her spine causing the old rickety chair she was sat in to creak quietly.

Lucy, who was sitting beside Levy, was just as restless. She was tapping her foot repetitively, giving the table a little shake or jolt every so often with her knee. Her body was leaning over the table, her elbows on the hard wood, her chin in her palm. She began to drum her fingers against her cheek lightly.

Both girls stared down at the enormous book, expressions dejected.

Lucy glared down at the pages, running her eyes over the inner edge of the spine, over the little remains of the ripped pages. Those few missing pages…god, they irritated her. The fact that she couldn't figure out who'd stolen them was really starting to piss her off. What was the reasoning, the purpose? She had to figure it out. She was sure that this mystery was going to drive her berserk.

Levy let out a groan, letting her torso slide down; her forehead hit the table with a dull _thump_. "Ugh—maybe we should just ask everyone. You think that would work?"

"You think they'd willingly tell us?" Lucy muttered, letting out a heavy breath. "After going through all of the trouble of stealing pages out of a book, you think they'd just come forward if we asked?"

"No," Levy replied dully. "But I'm desperate."

Lucy nodded. "Me too. I just can't think of any sort of way to figure it out—there's way too many guildmembers to question individually, and we can't exactly ask the whole group, not if we are hoping someone actually steps forward…"

"This is hopeless! All we've got is a torn up book. If only the library tracked who entered and exited, at least we'd have a lead."

"That would've been nice." Lucy began to think, her mind running over the concept Levy had mentioned. A way to track who came into the library, who took out books…sure, they didn't have that set up, but in theory, there _was_ a way to tell who used each book….

Lucy straightened up, eyes wide. "Wait!" She cried turning to look at her friend; Levy jumped at the sudden noise. "Do you think, maybe, we could check for fingerprints? I mean, it's not like this book is popular—maybe we could catch some fingerprints, do some comparisons, and figure out all of the people who've recently touched the book. From there, we could narrow it down. That's possible, isn't it?"

Levy's gaze scanned the room as she listened to Lucy brainstorm. She blinked, a determined little frown tugging at her eyebrows. After a long moment, she murmured out, "I mean…it's definitely possible. I'm not positive we'll find any prints, but we can sure try." She looked at Lucy. "How'd you think of that?"

Lucy shrugged, trying to contain her smile. "You said something about tracking book usage—it just got me thinking."

"You're a genius!"

"So, what exactly will we need to do this?" Lucy inquired, relying more on Levy's know-how and expertise. "I've never looked for prints before."

"It's relatively easy, actually. We just need a few items—I'm sure the lab downstairs will have them."

The celestial mage shook her head, still shocked as to how expansive the guild was. "This place has a _lab_?"

Levy grinned. "Yeah! I go down there to do experiments in my spare time. You're free to join me!"

"That would be so much fun!" Lucy gushed, unable to hide her smile.

Lucy could tell already that her and Levy were going to be great friends. They just _clicked_. They were kindred spirits.

The girls dashed down to the laboratory in the basement of the guild hall, going through drawers and cabinets in search of a few basic ingredients: iodine crystals, a large container, and starch water. After about a half hour rummaging through the lab's cabinets, they located everything they needed, and ran back up the library to get to work.

"The hardest part in our case is to find a sample that we think will contain fingerprints. I don't particularly want to risk pulling the book apart and testing each and every page for fingerprints, so I thought it might be easier to do it in bulk." Levy set everything on the table, organizing it as she spoke.

"That's possible?"

"Of course it is!" Levy pulled on some gloves, offering Lucy a pair. "We just needed to find a container large enough to fit the book. It took a bit of digging, but I think this bin will do."

Lucy nodded, snapping the gloves onto her hands. "So, what now?"

"First, we take our iodine crystals and dump a small amount into the bottom of our container." Levy unscrewed the cap and shook a few of the black chunks out into the bin. "Now, we place the book in the container on top of these crystals."

Lucy lifted the book up, groaning at its weight. She plopped it into the container, then gave a nod to her science partner. "All good."

"Now—" Levy began, hauling the lid of the container up and snapping it on, "We enclose the book in the container with the crystals." She turned to Lucy. "Now, go get Natsu."

Lucy frowned, lips pouting out. "Natsu? Why?"

Levy rolled her eyes. "I'll explain when he's here. Just go fetch him really quick—but don't tell him what it's about."

"Why not?"

"Everyone's a suspect, Lucy! Get your head in the game!"

"Ah, right," Lucy said with a fierce nod. "What was I thinking?"

She ducked out of the library, quickly making her way through the massive corridors; she jogged down the enormous staircase, scanning the hall below. The place was packed; she ran her eyes over the crowds, hoping she'd be able to find the boy quickly.

For whatever reason, she felt like they were close to figuring the mystery out, and she didn't want to halt that progress even a little bit.

After about a minute or two of searching, Lucy finally located the boy; he was currently in the middle of a threeway brawl between himself, Gray, and Gajeel. Lucy huffed out a sigh, knowing he wouldn't be happy that she was interrupting, but trudged forwards anyways, desperate to solve the mystery of the missing pages.

A circle had formed around the battle, and people were shouting out advice, chanting the boys' names in excitement. Lucy butted through, squeezing between people, practically falling into the middle of the little battle arena they'd created.

"Gah!" Lucy hissed, ducking as a fireball flew above her, nearly hitting her square in the face.

The fireball was followed by a quick, "Whoops! Sorry, Luce!"

Lucy turned, letting out a cry of exasperation. The boys were all wailing on one another, throwing fireballs and ice knives and iron pellets, screaming out insults and battle cries.

"Natsu," Lucy said, voice a little weaker than she would've liked. She'd intended to be strong and demand he comply with her wishes, but she hadn't expected him to be in the middle of a fight like this. In fact, she was a little worried for her safety right now. The boys were tumbling closer, brawling at maximum speed. "I need you to come with me."

She couldn't see his face, but she heard his reply. "Uh, little busy Luce."

A chunk of ice whizzed by her head. Lucy let out a whimper. This was where she was going to die, she could feel it. "It's kind of an emergency."

Natsu's head poked up as he caught Gajeel in a chokehold. "Can it wait 'till after?"

The corners of Lucy's lips turned completely downwards. "Levy said you need to come right now."

Gajeel perked up. "Levy? What's that little shrimp want?"

Natsu scowled down at Gajeel, tightening his hold on his throat. "Shut up, idiot." He turned and kicked Gray in the crotch, and then glanced back at Lucy. "Are you gonna interrogate me again?"

Gray, who was groaning and holding his groin, lt out a raspy, "They harassed you, too?"

Lucy sighed. "No, it's not an interrogation. We just need your assistance."

The crowd was becoming a little restless, unhappy that Lucy was essentially pausing the smackdown. Lucy shot the crowd an apologetic glance.

"Ugh, do I have to? Can't you get Erza, or something?"

"No," Lucy murmured, shaking her head. "We need you specifically. Levy's orders."

The boy sighed, releasing Gajeel from his tight hold. "Fine. But only because I like you so much."

Lucy rolled her eyes, desperately trying to stop the blood from flowing up to her cheeks.

"Oi—I'm coming, too!" Gajeel muttered, dark eyes shifting to give Natsu a little glare.

"Why?" Lucy asked. "We just need Natsu."

The boy's voice was gruff. "I'm bored. Besides, who'll bug the shrimp if I'm not there?"

"Ugh," The girl replied with a sigh, turning once Natsu reached her side. "Whatever, Levy's gonna kill me, but fine."

For a quick second, a smile broke through Gajeel's dark expression; he made his way, following behind Lucy and Natsu. As soon as Lucy caught sight of the smile, it disappeared, evaporating into thin air; his face twisted into a blank look, a clever mask to hide the burst of happiness that had bubbled to the surface.

Lucy was going to say something, tease the boy about how much he seemed to enjoy being near Levy, but she was distracted by Natsu's voice.

Natsu's elbow brushed against hers as they walked. The hallway was massive, but their bodies were close. And quite honestly, Lucy didn't mind—she liked being this close to him.

"Couldn't stand being away from me, eh?" Natsu asked, that same stupid smirk curling its way onto his lips.

With a roll of her eyes, Lucy snapped back, "Hardly. I'm just following orders."

Gajeel spoke up now. "I don't get it. Why would shrimp need _this_ idiot?"

Natsu snarled back at the taller boy, shooting him a glare.

"Not really sure," Lucy shrugged. "It seemed important, though."

Gajeel's eyebrows tugged down, eyes narrowing at the boy in front of him unhappily. "Hmph."

The trio made their way up to library quickly; Lucy was in a hurry, desperate to finish this little experiment so she could unlock the truth between the missing pages.

Soon, she would know who had stolen the color pink.

They'd busted into the library—Gajeel and Natsu had begun to argue who would've won the fight, had Lucy not interrupted, and ended up wrestling and brawling as they charged into the library—making Levy jump and cry out in fear.

"I brought the twerp," Lucy said happily, taking a seat beside Levy at the table. "Unfortunately, he brought a friend."

Natsu gave a wave to the other girl. "Hiya, Levy."

Gajeel gave Levy a smirk; he made his way to her and plopped his big hand on the top of her hair, patting her. "What's with the gloves, tiny?"

Levy's expression instantly switched from excitement to dread. Her eyes narrowed and she let out a groan of disgust. "Ugh. Why are _you_ here, Gajeel?"

He leaned down so his head was beside hers, a smug smile on his lips. "Had to see why you needed Natsu so badly. You got a crush on him, or somethin'?"

Levy shot Gajeel a glare. "It's a research project." Her tone was cold.

Meanwhile, Natsu had taken a seat across the table from Lucy; he kicked back, tossing his feet up onto the table, nearly kicking over the container with the book in it.

"Natsu!" Lucy scolded, smacking his shoes. "Get your dirty feet away from our project."

"But I'm _tired_!"

"You're getting mud _everywhere_!"

"Ugh," He growled grumpily, hauling his feet off of the table. "What did you guys need me for, anyways?"

Levy turned her attention to Natsu, ignoring Gajeel. "We're doing an experiment—we need you to lightly heat up the bottom of this big container."

Natsu's eyebrows raised. "That's it?"

"Yup," Levy replied with a nod. "That's it."

"Easy peasy!" He cried, sitting up and sticking out his hand. Flames erupted from his fingers, roaring out and engulfing his entire hand.

"Wait!" Lucy cried, eyes wide. "Natsu, just _warm it up_. Don't char it, okay?"

"Have some faith, Luce." He lifted the container with one hand, placing his other (flame-engulfed) hand beneath it. The flames simmered down, cooling slightly until they were minimal. Bit by bit, the container warmed up, and small changes began to take place.

A little bit of gas began to release in the container, filling the air inside with a wispy grey gas. With a couple minutes, the entire container was filled, so much so that the book wasn't visible anymore.

"So, what's the point?" Gajeel asked, leaning over to get a better look at the gas inside. "What kind of experiment is this?"

Levy didn't bother to look up at him—she was far too caught up in the experiment before her. "We're checking for fingerprints on this book."

Natsu made a face. "Why?"

Lucy looked over at him, eyes brightening a bit at his expression. He had a little frown on his face, his lips jutting out a bit, as he focused on controlling the flames. It was kind of…cute. "For science."

He snorted, tone sarcastic. "That explains it."

"It's a study into the degradation and wearing down of fibrous substances, such as paper, due to the introduction of diaphoresis or oils from human skin," Levy spurted out. It was a good cover for their investigation. Besides, the boys surely wouldn't understand the relatively big words she'd used. They'd never be suspicious. "So, basically, we're testing how fingerprints and human use can destroy paper and books."

Natsu's face was incredibly blank. "Sounds like a snore-fest."

Gajeel turned his head slightly, peering over at Levy. She turned and looked back at him, their faces close. He blinked twice, and then murmured, "You're pretty smart, Levy."

Levy looked at the boy, her eyes widening after a second. She seemed confused, for some reason—Lucy supposed it was just her surprised by Gajeel saying something nice. The girl's gaze dropped to the table in front of her, the corners of her lips contorting into a smile. "I—um. Thanks."

Natsu watched the interaction with a subtle curiosity, a happy yet reserved look washing over his features. His eyes darted from the duo in front of him to Lucy, lips widening at the sight of her. And they seemed to have a silent conversation, conversing only with their eyes; they smirked at one another, amused by their friends' quiet, timid flirtation.

Lucy felt a heat flush through her body, resonating in her chest like flames flickering through her soul. And she was happy, so deliriously happy right there, with her friends and her life and the adventure she'd begun.

And she knew that if her soul had a color, it would be a soft, cozy orange, just like Natsu's flames.

"is this good enough?" Natsu questioned, his voice breaking through the flirtation filled tension. "I'm gettin' hungry."

His words seemed to break both Levy and Gajeel out of their little dazes; Levy's head snapped up, eyes wide, whilst Gajeel returned to a standing position incredibly quickly, fidgeting.

"Oh—right. Um, yeah, you can stop. Thanks a lot, Natsu." Levy's voice was weird, still distracted.

He retracted his flames, setting the warm bin on the table, and patted his growling tummy. "You guys wanna go get some food?"

"Me and Lucy need to finish this up really quickly—but we can meet you two down there, if you want."

The boys stood, hopping to the door quickly, excited by the idea of a hot meal. They both gave a wave before quickly shoving each other out of the door. Even after they left the room, the girls could hear the two idiots bickering down the hallway.

Levy turned to Lucy once she was confident the boys were out of earshot, a strange grin on her lips. Her tone was still off, still a little fuzzy and distracted. "You ready for the fun part?"

"Of course. What do we do?"

"Well," the short girl began, tugging the lid off of the container. She cleared her throat, forcing herself back to reality. "If everything has gone to plan, our lovely book should be…" She paused, looking down at the big book, then turned back to Lucy with an excited grin on her lips. "Covered in fingerprints!"

Levy wasn't kidding—fingerprints littered the page, darkened by the iodine crystals placed at the bottom of the container.

"So, what now?"

"Well, these prints will only last a few hours—we want them to stay a bit longer than that for our investigation. So, we're going to spray the page with our starch water mixture—it will darken the prints so we can see every detail, and make them last a couple days."

The girls got right to work, spraying the starch water onto the page. Instantly, the grey toned prints turned black, and every single detail was noticeable.

Lucy whipped out her phone and took pictures of each full print—there were several that hadn't completely transferred to the paper, which made them pretty much useless in the investigation—and then nodded to her friend. Part one of their scientific approach was complete—now, they just needed to compare these prints to the members of the guild in order to come to a conclusion.

* * *

"And _why_ exactly should I doing this?"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Gray, just stick your fingers in the ink. It's not hard."

The girls had been making their rounds in the hall, approaching their fellow guild members and convincing them to give their fingerprint samples. They'd told everyone it was for their science experiment, that it would help them finish their project. Everyone they'd asked so far had agreed, happily squishing their fingers in the ink and pressing it against the blank paper, leaving their fingerprint smudge behind.

Everyone except for Gray, that is.

"I don't care if it's not hard," Gray muttered under his breath. "I'm not doing it?"

Natsu was sitting across the table, cheeks stuffed with food. "What's _your_ problem?"

Giving the food-obsessed boy a cold look, Gray explained. "These two _weirdos_ kidnapped me, interrogated me, and hurt my eardrums! Why the hell would I help them?"

Levy rolled her eyes. "It wasn't _that_ bad."

"I don't care. I'm not helping you two. You're psychos."

Lucy frowned. There didn't seem to be any way of getting Gray to change his mind—he was pretty annoyed with them, at the moment—and without _every single guild member's_ prints, they couldn't really come to a solid conclusion as to who had recently touched the book.

She looked at Levy, and they made a silent agreement. Levy lifted up three fingers, and mouthed the numbers.

 _Three, two….one_.

The two girls pounced on Gray, tackling him to the ground; Lucy chucked her body across his legs, pinning him to the floor, while Levy sat on his neck and grabbed his fingers. Gray let out a cry of surprise, trying to throw the girls off of him, but ultimately failed. Levy pushed his fingers in the ink and then planted his digits on the blank paper, being careful not to ruin the sample.

"We're good!" Levy cried, releasing Gray's upper body.

Lucy pushed herself up off of his legs, dusting her skirt off with a huff of breath.

Gray was still laying on the ground, utterly shocked. "What the fuck?" He blinked up at the girls. "You two are nuts."

Natsu was laughing. "You just got taken down by two girls!"

Gray glared at him. "Hey—they were heavy, okay?"

"Look at 'em!" Natsu replied with a snort. "They probably weight forty pounds put together."

Gray rubbed his neck. "Yeah, right. I think Levy broke a vertebrae."

Gajeel's voice cut through the following silence, a little rougher than usual. "Watch it, Gray." His tone was a bit dark, like he was sending out a very pointed warning.

Lucy and Levy high-fived, ignoring Gray's comments. They'd gotten the samples of their most stubborn suspect, all thanks to the element of surprise.

"I'm gonna go run this stack of samples up to the library, okay? You finish up the last of 'em. Sound good?" Levy asked, still breathing a little heavy from having to tackle Gray.

"Sure!" Lucy gave her a nod. "I'll be up in a few minutes!" She turned, facing her last two guild mates that had yet to get their fingerprints inked.

Natsu and Gajeel.

Lucy took a seat beside Natsu, shooting an apologetic glance at Gray, seated across from her. "Okay, boys—I'm gonna need your samples, too."

Gajeel let out a groan. "Fine, as long as you don't tackle me."

She flashed him a sarcastic sneer. "Har har, very funny." She passed him one of her ink kits and a piece of blank paper, and then turned to the boy beside her. "C'mon, Natsu. I don't have all day."

His cheeks were absolutely stuffed with food, and his fingers were coated in mashed potatoes. Honestly, if he hadn't had a fork in his hand, Lucy would've assumed he was eating with his fingers. How he had gotten himself so covered in food was beyond her. "Right now?" He murmured, voice muffled by the insane amount of food in his mouth.

Lucy let out a breath in exasperation. "Yes, right now. Clean yourself up."

Natsu grumbled to himself under his breath, swallowing the giant lump of food and wiping his hands on his shirt until they were relatively clean. "Okay, fine, fine. Better?"

Lucy pushed her second ink kit to him. "Here you go."

"What do I do?"

"First, you stick your fingers in the ink, making sure they are coated." She explained everything to him in crystal clear detail. "Then, you push each finger on the blank paper, careful not to drag or smudge anything. Got it?"

"Easy as pie." Still, despite his confident tone, his focused little frown worked itself onto his face as he did it. After a couple minutes, he passed the paper back to the girl, a cocky grin on his face. "There you go, Luce. Looks good, doesn't it?"

Lucy glanced down at the paper, cringing once she saw how terribly awful the fingerprint samples were. It was like he'd been finger painting—every line was blurry, messy. "Natsu," Lucy said with a sigh. "You must've moved too much. It's all blurry."

He pouted. "I tried so hard."

An amused smile worked its way onto her lips, and she met his gaze. "Here, let me help."

Lucy grabbed a hold of the boys' hand gently, carefully dipping his fingers into the ink kit, ever so softly pushing his fingertips into the ink soaked sponge within. She twisted his fingers, making sure each and every one was coated equally.

Natsu peered down at her, watching how incredibly focused she was. Her body was leaning into his as she worked diligently, careful not to mess up the ink kit as she pushed his fingers into the sponge. And he couldn't help but grin down at her, watching her expression get all messed up into this look of absolute, complete concentration.

Lucy heard the boy let out a little snort of amusement, and she looked up at him. It was only then that she realized how close their bodies were to one another—her thigh was pressed against his leg, their arms touching every so often. When she looked up at him, their faces were so close that she could feel the heat rolling off of his skin, fanning over her.

Her heart hammered in her chest, although she wasn't sure why. "What's so funny?" She questioned, the heat beginning to creep up her neck and into her cheeks.

"Nothin'," Natsu murmured, his voice a low rumble in his chest. "I just like watching you work."

The heat was intense in her cheeks, and she turned back to his hands, not wanting him to get a full view of her bashfulness. She carefully lifted his fingers, pressing each one onto the piece of paper, holding them where they were so that the prints wouldn't smudge.

Lucy wasn't sure why, but her heart was fluttering, a rush of adrenaline working its way through her veins.

After a couple second, Lucy pulled Natsu's fingers back, revealing perfect fingerprint samples left on the page.

"Wow. You're good at that."

Lucy smiled, eyes flickering back to Natsu. "Thanks."

A comfortable silence settled between them, and they smiled at one another. For the second time today, that familiar sensation of _heat_ radiated in her chest, reiterating the happiness that was clearly displayed on her face.

Gajeel ducked his head over Natsu's shoulder, his long arm shoving the ink kit and paper back to Lucy. "Here ya go. I really don't know how could fuck this up, Salamander. It was pretty easy."

The tension in the air fizzled back down to nothing, and Lucy was broken out of her daze. After a couple seconds of stammering, she realized she was still holding onto Natsu's hand—how embarrassing—and she released it quickly.

She stood, scooping up her things and turning to leave quickly, hoping no one would notice the rather dark shade of grey etching itself onto her cheeks as she blushed. "Thanks guys! Seeya!" She cried over her shoulder as she made a break for the stairs.

"Wait, Luce!" Natsu cried after her.

Lucy was already making her way up the stairs; she turned around, looking at him. "Yeah, Natsu?"

His head cocked to the side a little and he gave her a bright, beaming grin, one that Lucy swore lit up the entire room. "Thanks for your help."

Face as hot as the sun—and probably the darkest shade of grey possible—Lucy gave the boy a sheepish grin, then spun and ran up to the library as fast as possible, hoping no one could see her reaction.

Lucy crashed into the library, turning and locking the door behind her; she leaned against it, letting out a _whoosh_ of air.

What the hell was happening? Why was she so… _shy_? It was Natsu, for god's sake! He was the biggest idiot she'd ever met. She should _not_ be getting so flustered by his eyes, his smile, the way he said her name…

Lucy closed her eyes, leaning her head back on the door with a thump. Was she…starting to have a crush on _Natsu_? The first friend she'd ever made?

"Lucy!" Levy cried, glancing up from the stacks of fingerprint samples. She had her glasses on and her hair tied back—she was prepared for business. "I've already found two fingerprints that match those on the book!"

Lucy rushed forward. "Really? _Who?_ "

"Well—Juvia, which we already knew about. But the second one is someone we'd never suspected." She paused, sucking in a breath—she was talking way too fast. "Gildarts Clive!"

"Gildarts?" Lucy repeated with a frown. He was one of the most elusive members of the guild—one who left on year long missions. He, much like Natsu, had never been photographed or featured in Sorcerer Weekly, although he was often speculated about. Luckily, he'd been home when Lucy had joined the guild. She'd seen him around—usually chatting up a woman at the guild's bar—but had yet to speak to him. "Why would he be looking at the book?"

"The real question, my dear Lucy, is why did he steal the color pink?"

Lucy's eyebrows shot up. "You think it was him?"

Levy shrugged. "Maybe. Who knows? We'll just have to ask him."

"Let's go!" Lucy cried, tossing open the door and running out into the corridor.

Excitement began to chug through Lucy's veins, her heartbeat quickening as they made their way down the hall, on the lookout for one of the most powerful members of the guild.

They were close to discovering the truth—Lucy could feel it.

* * *

 _ **A/N:** **Hi readers! Thanks so much for reading my stuff! I love the reviews you guys are leaving me, they mean so so much!**_

 _ **To the anon reviewer with the really detailed theories: I LOVE IT KEEP 'EM COMING. I'm not going to say whether you're right or not (that would ruin the fun) but I am loving the effort and detail in your responses to each chapter! Thank you so much!**_

 _ **To the other anon reviewer that was worried about the Juvia/Gray pairing: I totally understand that the ship not being paired would turn you off of a story. Unfortunately, I'm not about to spill the future events of the story to the public, so feel free to message me and I'll tell you what will happen and you can decide on your own terms if you want to continue the story or not. I don't want to waste your time, but I don't exactly want to spoil the story for everyone. Message me! You can message me on here, or on my tumblr (url is in my profile) and I'll let you know what will happen.**_

 _ **Again, thanks for all of the love and messages and reviews. It really means the world to me. I hope I am doing right by you guys with this story. Please review!**_


	11. Gildarts

Lucy forced a little breath out, trying to force herself to concentrate. Her stomach was in tight little knots, her hands balled up into small fists. Her gaze flashed over to the man sitting at the bar, beads of sweat beginning to form on her forehead.

Gildarts.

Levy and Lucy had come up with a plan: Lucy would go and talk to Gildarts, try to get the truth out of him, while Levy did some research and interrogations to those closest to him. They figured if they split up, they'd get more done—and also refrain from going psycho _good cop bad cop_ like they'd done to Gray.

It was a good plan. Really. Except for one key detail that Lucy hadn't mentioned.

Her fangirl side was coming through. How would she contain it around gildarts?

Lucy stood back for a moment, watching the older man attempt at sweet talking a woman at the bar. His hands were cupped around a mug of beer, his lips curling up into a cocky, flirtatious smirk; there was a twinkle of lust in eyes as he looked over the lady. Lucy could overhear bits and pieces of their conversation, and almost instantly, her eyes had widened in shock. That convo was _not_ youngster-friendly. She hadn't thought Gildarts would be so lewd.

Lucy sighed. By the looks of _that_ conversation, she'd be waiting to speak to Gildarts for hours. She went and took a seat at the bar a few stools away, asking Mira for a drink. She rested her elbows on the bar, her cheek smushing up against her palm.

"That's a nice dress you've got on," Gildarts said, pausing afterwards to chug back the rest of his beer.

The woman seemed pleased. "Why, thank you."

"It'd look even better on my floor."

Lucy sunk even further into her chair, embarrassed that she was overhearing this. Sure, she could walk away—but what if this was her only chance to ask Gildarts about the book before he took off for another five years? He was too unpredictable to wait for—she'd have to ask him today. Preferably before he took home this random woman to bang.

Besides, Lucy was a huge fangirl and the fact that she was listening to one of Fairy Tail's strongest mages attempt to hit on a chick was far too fascinating to pass up. This was way better than reading the dating rumors in Sorcerer Weekly!

"Is that so?" The woman shot back curtly, a grin playing on her lips. "Maybe we should test that theory out."

Gildarts let out a chuckle, his hand twisting around her waist. "I'd love to. My place?"

"Sounds good to m—" The woman began.

Mira sashayed by behind the bar, carrying over the mug of beer Lucy had ordered; she gave Gildarts a friendly smile and a wink as she passed by—as she did to nearly every member of the guild—and put the drink in front of Lucy.

Gildarts' gaze lingered a little too long on Mira, falling a bit too low as he watched her walk away. And yeah, okay, maybe he'd drooled a little bit. He was a lover of all things beautiful, that was all. And Mira just so happened to be a beautiful girl. Nothing weird about that.

His date didn't seem to think so. She stopped mid-sentence, letting out a gasp of disgust. "Ugh— _really_ , Gildarts?" She'd snapped, clearly not impressed with him blatantly checking out his fellow guild member right in front of her. "Isn't she a little young for your taste?"

Gildarts was still too wrapped up in the beauty of women to recognize that he was in dangerous territory. His brain was fuzzy, like it usually was after he'd caught wind of a beautiful woman, and he muttered out the first thing that came to his mind. "Nah—she's just about right."

The woman scowled at him. She grabbed her drink and tossed it in his face, turning away without a second thought. "Pervert." She walked out the doors, heels clicking across the floor.

Lucy glanced over at Gildarts, shocked. She looked back to Mira, who was snickering.

"Isn't that a little weird, that he was checking you out?" Lucy asked. I mean, really, his date hadn't been wrong—Gildarts was quite a bit older than Mirajane. Much, much older. "He could be your father."

Mira shrugged. "He's always loved the ladies."

Sorcerer Weekly had always commented on the rumors surrounding Gildarts and the various women often seen leaving his house, but it had never been confirmed or denied. To see it so blatantly laid out in front of her was a little surprising, to say the least.

Lucy looked over to Gildarts, who was now using napkins to get the drink off of his face. Tugging herself up, out of her seat, she made her way over to him, bringing her mug of beer with her. It was about time she tried to wrestle the truth about the book from him. "Rough night?" Lucy asked, trying to sound casual and chill, like she wasn't having an absolute fangirl meltdown on the spot.

He sopped up the remaining liquid with the napkin, trying to wipe himself off. "That's an understatement." His dark eyes flashed over to Lucy, a cheerful spark to them.

Right away, she could tell he was a nice person. Despite the very obviously true rumors about him being a flirt and a womanizer, she could tell she liked him. He had that _funny uncle_ vibe to him—she could tell he was a good person.

"I'm Gildarts. You're new, right?"

Lucy gave him a nod. "Lucy. Yup—I just joined a little while ago. I thought I'd come talk to you, since we haven't had the opportunity to chat yet." It was a good enough cover, she figured. He wouldn't be able to tell she was here just to investigate.

Gildarts took a seat at the bar, patting the stool beside him; Lucy hopped onto it gingerly. Gildarts hand flickered up, and he called over Mira, ordering two more drinks—one for him, and one for Lucy. Once they got them, they clinked glasses.

"Welcome to the guild, little Lucy."

Lucy had grinned at the man, the realization that she was _actually_ a part of this guild striking her very suddenly. She was here, in the Fairy Tail's guild hall, sharing drinks with _Gildarts Clive_? How was this even reality? Was she dreaming this entire time?

Lucy sipped at her beer, whilst Gildarts threw his head back, guzzling his entire mug back. He let out a grunt as the icy liquid stung his throat, then turned to the teen. "So," He said gruffly, that charming smirk worming its way back onto his mouth. "What is it, then?"

She made a face, unsure. "What?"

He nodded at her, waving his right hand in a little circle, motioning for her to do something. "Let's hear it. I saw you scheming over there." He lifted his chin, nodding towards the stool she'd been sitting on beforehand. "What do you want to talk about?"

Lucy's eyes widened; her heartbeat picked up as she began to panic. "I—well, I, uh…" She sucked in a shaky breath. "How'd you know?"

Gildarts smiled at her knowingly. "You've got that look on your face."

Huh. Creepy pervert, but also still an incredibly understanding, incredibly wise fellow. He'd known she wanted to talk to him about something just by reading her expression—and he'd allowed it. In fact, he'd encouraged it.

Despite his obvious immaturity (chasing a stupid amount of women), he had an air of wisdom to him. He felt like…like a father.

More of a father than hers had ever been, and she'd just met the guy.

Lucy let out a sigh, knowing she wouldn't be able to conceal her true purpose from him. He was too old to fool—she couldn't trick him like she did with Natsu, Gray and Gajeel. She'd have to fess up, come clean and just truly ask him the truth.

"Well," Lucy began, eyes dropping to the bar counter. "I wanted to ask you a question, if that's okay."

Gildarts nodded, his hand coming up and tucking a loose strand of hair behind his ear. "Ask away."

"I know this is incredibly personal, but…can you see color?" Lucy asked, afraid to meet his eyes. "It's just, I'm a big fan, and I—well, I always wanted to know, and—"

He cut her off, waving his hand. He was smiling at her again. "Don't get all flustered—you don't have to explain yourself." He turned so he was completely facing the bar, resting his elbows on it. He waved at Mira to bring him another beer. Gildarts paused for a moment, a strange look contorting his features, before he answered the question. "Yes, I can see colors."

Lucy was surprised with his honesty—but then again, nearly everyone in the guild had surprised her with their honesty. No one she'd asked had hid anything from her. They were all so…trusting.

She aspired to be more like her new friends.

"If it's not too much to ask, can you tell me when you gained the ability?"

Gildarts' funny expression had transitioned into an all-out, no holds barred, beaming smile. He turned his head, craning his neck so he could look at Lucy. "Believe it or not, it was a girl."

Lucy snorted. "Shocker."

He shrugged. "If you haven't already heard all the rumors—I like women. A lot. But I'm not just there for the physical aspect of it, you know? I'm a lover. I fall in love easily, and I fall in love hard." He paused, letting out a breath, still smiling. "But this girl…it was very sudden. Hit me like a ton of bricks. Bam, head over heels."

His smile was contagious; just seeing his expression like that made Lucy's cheeks lift, her own lips twisting up into a warm smile. She'd never seen someone so… _happy_ about love. It made her feel hopeful, made her excited about the prospect.

If _this_ was what finding your soul mate was like, Lucy couldn't wait. Sure, she'd already met them, apparently, but she was excited for what came after. The joy, the delirious ecstasy of feeling so uncontrollably in love with someone. She wanted that.

The look on his face…well, it was so _pure_. So absolutely drenched in love.

"Who is she?" Lucy questioned, a little confused. Had she not just seen him hitting on that woman at the bar? Where was his love now?

Gildarts looked over to Lucy, eyes sparkling with complete joy. "My daughter," He murmured, lifting his hand and pointing across the room. "My beautiful Cana."

Lucy spun on her stool, looking over to the brown haired girl chugging back a keg of booze. "Cana? Cana Alberona?" Lucy blinked, surprised. Cana was the resident alcoholic in the guild, and a fan favorite. "She's your daughter?"

"Yup. She told me not long ago. Stormed right up and told me off." He let out a sigh, getting all dreamy just looking at her. When he spoke, his voice was high-pitched, absolutely filled with adoration. "Nothing's been the same since."

Was it possible that _Lucy_ , guild super fan, hadn't known about an extremely important connection between two of her absolute faves? This was nuts! Her fangirl heart quivered with joy.

Another, much larger part of Lucy, was shaken by the revelation. Gildarts had fallen in love with his daughter, much like Layla had fallen in love with Lucy. It made her heart ache, made her miss her mother for a long moment. _This_ sort of love, finding your soul mate in your child…it was the most tender kind of love there was. Lucy looked at Gildarts a little differently now, seeing him in a new light.

But this new information also confused Lucy. She frowned, trying to organize her thoughts.

Cana and Gildarts had been in the same guild for years. They'd interacted—Lucy had seen them take part in the guild's annual team-building exercises—and yet, Gildarts hadn't gained the ability to see colors then. Only once Cana revealed to him that she was his daughter, his flesh and blood, did the ability to see colors strike him.

What did this mean? How was it possible? It didn't make any sense.

"Can Cana see colors because of you, too?"

Gildarts snorted. "Nah. My girl…she hasn't found her person yet. But she will. Just look at her. Someone will light that girl's world up."

Lucy rested her cheek on her palm, deep in thought. Realizing he had a daughter, Gildarts gained the ability to see colors—she was his soul mate, his person. But…Gildarts' was _not_ Cana's soul mate, as she still could only see the world in black and white.

This only further proved Lucy's theory that soul mates were not always paired off. Just like Juvia and Gray, Gildarts and Cana were not each other's soul mate. You could love another, you could be placed on this earth just to meet another person, but…that feeling didn't always have to be returned.

They could be the reason your earth was spinning, but maybe you weren't theirs.

Lucy shook her head, trying to get back to the main investigation rather than her own theories. "What was the first color you saw?"

Gildarts seemed confused by that question. "Well… _all of them_. It just hit me like a bullet."

Well, darn. That didn't help the investigation even a little bit. Still, Lucy found herself confused. Was she the _only one_ who only saw colors one at a time? Was she the _one_ exception to the rule? What was wrong with her?

"You used that encyclopedia on colors in the library—why?"

Mira swung by and dropped off his next drink; he took a long sip at it. Lucy could see where Cana got her tendency to drink from.

Gildarts shrugged. "I wanted to know the name of one color. Figured that was the best place to look."

Lucy's heart jumped at his words. One color? _One specific color?_ Could it be? Could she have solved the mystery? "What color was it? Why'd you need just one color?"

That same smile touched on his lips. "It's the color of Cana's eyes. I just…I had to know what it was called. It's my favorite." He paused, then smiled at Lucy. "Purple. Lilac."

All of the excitement and adrenaline beginning to rush through her body instantly dropped in disappointment, feeling like lead in her stomach. So…it wasn't him. He hadn't been looking for the color pink—he'd been researching _purple_.

Great. No leads.

Lucy sat for a moment in silence, then grinned up at the man. "You're a good dad, Gildarts."

He seemed surprised by that. "You think so?"

She nodded, sure of her words. "Absolutely."

"Well, thanks kid," He grumbled back, a little shyly. "I try."

Lucy finished the rest of her drink, thanked Gildarts for his honesty and time, and then stood; she weaved her way through the guild hall, greeting her new friends and guildmates as she strode by. Once she got to the top of the stairs, she turned back, watching the guild bustle with life.

Okay, so maybe they'd lost their only lead. And maybe she was out of ideas. Maybe the mystery of the missing pink pages would never be solved.

But she didn't really mind, not now.

So far, she'd met three people who had met their soul mates. She'd seen the looks on their faces, the love etched into their pores. She'd seen an honest, straightforward love in Erza's stance, in the way she admitted her and her Jellal were meant to meet. She'd seen the dedicated, head-over-heels kind of love in Juvia's soul, the love that pined for Gray. And now, after today, she'd seen the pure, tender love that only a father could feel in Gildarts' eyes.

So, yeah. Lucy was stumped. The mystery couldn't be solved. They'd lost.

But god, she was so full of hope. So excited to feel that kind of love, so excited to find out who her soul mate was, just so she could embrace those feelings.

Lucy smiled down at her guild, never feeling more at home somewhere, and then turned, making her way up to the library.

When she got there, she was surprised to find three bodies awaiting her arrival: Levy, Gajeel, and Natsu.

When Levy hopped up, eager to know if they'd done it, if they'd solved their mystery— _um, experiment_ —Lucy just shook her head, a smile still on her lips. _No_ , she'd said. But she wasn't sad. Levy was confused, sure, but the boys were there and she couldn't ask for an explanation without revealing their mystery, so she'd dropped it temporarily.

Rather than be glum about the dead end in the mystery, Lucy decided to be happy. Because she was happy. She'd never felt more alive, never felt so sure that something great was going to happen.

Lucy sat beside Natsu, letting out a big _whoosh_ of air. He'd smiled at her, eyes searching her peaceful expression, and tossed his arm over her shoulder casually, proceeding to ask her if she wanted to catch a movie that evening with Gajeel, Levy, and himself.

Lucy had smiled and agreed.

For the first time since she'd started trying to solve the mystery, Lucy felt satisfied.

She tilted her head back and stared at the ceiling as her friends chatted, her head resting on Natsu's arm. And bit by bit, as she stared up at the roof, chunks of grey started to fall apart, crumble away to reveal something different, something she'd never seen before. Lucy looked around the room, surprised to see the walls of the library reacting in a similar way. Black, grey, white…it tore away like an old skin, being reborn into something new.

Lucy smiled. A new color. She sat up, scooting closer to the table, pulling the book closer to her. She flipped and flipped through the pages until she'd found the right spot, hit the point in the book she'd been looking for.

Blue.


	12. Blue as Blue Could Be

Natsu's eyes were trained on the girl, his body frozen stiff as a mask of confusion washed over his features. He stared at the girl for a long few seconds, his eyebrows pulling downwards as his lips twisted their way into a frown. He crossed his arms and leaned forward, his face incredibly close to hers, and stared directly into her eyes.

"Luce?" He asked, voice a little quiet. "Did you die?"

She would've responded to the boy if she could have. But right now, her limbs and her joints were glued in position, frozen solid. And she would've been embarrassed by the lack of space between their bodies, by the way his breath fanned across her face, but she was indisposed at the moment.

Lucy couldn't move, couldn't speak, couldn't even think enough to recognize what was going on.

Natsu poked her face, getting worried now by her lack of response. "Lucy, you're creeping me out." He tried to pass it off as a joke, but the hint of fear in his voice was growing stronger. His usually steady words were a little shaky, a little unsure. "Talk to me."

No response. Just a frozen Lucy standing before him, eyes glowering up at the sky. She was like those freaky mannequins at the mall.

Natsu began to pout. Did he do something wrong? Say something stupid? Had he set her off somehow? Erza always told him he had a tendency to say the wrong thing at the worst moment. Had he done something to bother Lucy?

He thought back, tapping his chin. He'd gone over to Lucy's apartment—alone, this time; Happy had flown off to the guild hall in search of Carla—to walk the girl to the hall. He'd gone up to her apartment, greeted her, chatted with her for a bit. Everything had seemed fine—in fact, she'd been rather chipper.

Natsu had told Lucy about the upcoming festival. It was Magnolia's annual blossom viewing party. Fairy Tail always made a day of it—everyone would go to the park for a picnic and for the guild's annual bingo game. At night, everyone would settle in and watch the giant Sakura trees light up the evening sky.

Of course, the trees always brought in lots of viewers because of the rumors that they lit up the sky with a million different colors. He wasn't sure if the rumors were true, but there were always lots of recurring visitors from all over the country, and they always seemed in utter awe of the trees' beauty.

Lucy had nearly gone berserk. Her first festival as a member of the guild! She'd flown into a state of disarray as her excitement began to grow. A picnic? A bingo game? A night beneath the stars—and supposed ' _rainbow_ ' trees—with her friends? It was perfect! She'd never been so excited before.

They'd then decided to go have lunch at the guild, so Lucy could discuss the festival with her fellow guild members. She'd been really chatty the entire way down the stairs—she kept thanking Natsu for bringing her to the guild, she was so excited, she really couldn't believe this was her life now—but the second they'd stepped out the door, everything stopped.

Lucy froze, eyes staring directly above at the sky. Natsu had frowned, asked her if everything was okay, and she had yet to respond.

Which brought Natsu to the present moment, where he was currently sulking, staring at the frozen girl before him.

He hadn't said anything particularly rude, he thought. Nothing that warranted a response of _this_ magnitude, at least. Maybe the excitement for the festival had gotten to her? Maybe she was just daydreaming?

He sighed. He was too hungry for this. He'd have to resort to more severe tactics.

Not hesitating in the slightest, Natsu stepped forward and clapped his hands over Lucy's eyes. He waited a moment, his face still contorted into that stupid little grimace, hoping that taking away her eyesight would get her to snap out of whatever daze she was currently engulfed in.

Luckily, he was right. Within seconds, Lucy was sputtering and mumbling nonsense out to him, stepped back away from his touch.

"I just—It's not that—the sky, it's just so—Natsu?" Lucy blinked at him, eyes big and wide and a little confused.

Natsu snorted. "You okay?"

"I'm…" She glanced down at the ground, and then back up to the sky, a funny look on her face. "I'm…yeah, I'm okay. I'm good."

Natsu's eyes narrowed at her. "Did you just have a stroke, or something?"

"What? No."

He took a step towards her, touching his palm to her forehead, his eyebrows stitching together in concern. "You're warm—you've got a fever."

Her face was hot. "I feel fine."

Natsu wasn't convinced. "You sure?" His voice was soft, not as rough as usual. His big hands moved down to her arms, steadying her as she stumbled back. His dark eyes washed over her slowly, concern radiating from his gaze.

Lucy's eyes flickered to the ground. "Yes," She muttered out weakly. "Yes."

In all honesty, _no,_ she did not feel fine. In fact, she was so far from fine that she didn't think she'd ever be fine again.

Because _fine_ was so plain, so incredible _blah_ , and what was happening to her at this particular moment was so completely opposite of blah that she thought maybe her brain was going to explode. Or her heart. Or maybe her soul. It was like every little piece of her was set on fire, set ablaze with life and love and something else incredibly invigorating.

Up until that point, she'd discovered colors slowly. Yellow, orange, whatever else she'd seen…they'd hit her randomly, and not completely. She'd seen bits of yellow in a flower or a flicker of orange in someone's hair, and that was as fast as it had come.

Yesterday, she'd caught sight of blue on the ceiling. That was that. Incredible, beautiful, but just as exciting as the rest of them. She'd gone home late, when all of the light of life had faded from Magnolia, and gone to bed, pleasantly happy with the small bit of blue that she had discovered.

But then, today, the second she stepped outside, she was hit with the color blue like a runaway train.

The sky was blue. So many different shades of blue all swirled together, all different and unique yet so utterly, incredibly the same that it made her heart ache. It was so magnificent, seeing so much _color_ just there like that, as if it should've been there the whole time, and she'd nearly burst into tears once she'd laid her eyes on it.

Blue, blue, blue. So many blues.

She'd stared up at the sky, frozen and overwhelmed and blown away and fucking mesmerized, so shocked that she couldn't bear to speak.

Deep down, deep in the deepest valleys of her heart, Lucy prayed to god that she didn't lose her technicolor vision. She didn't think she could handle it. Losing the absolutely intoxicating beauty of these colors? Losing her yellows and oranges and blues and everything else she had yet to gain? She wouldn't be able to handle it. She wouldn't be able to function, not if she couldn't see this blue sky every day.

She'd nearly cried. The beauty was so overwhelming, so addicting, she didn't ever want to stop looking at it. She'd felt the sobs begin in her chest, felt them work their way up through her throat. She stared up at the beautiful blue sky, eyes getting wet, about to be completely destroyed by weeping.

But then, everything had gone black. That was enough to choke back her tears, even if it was only black for a split second.

It broke her out of her trance, and she stepped back, realizing she was outside of her apartment, on the street. She was confused for a long moment, but she looked up and saw Natsu standing there, and suddenly it all made sense.

Her life didn't have to be bleak anymore. Here, in the guild, with Natsu…life was vibrant.

Something about his presence made her heart squeeze, made the colors of the trees and the flowers and the sky seem even brighter, even more incredible.

The world was a vivid place. An absolute masterpiece. The most perfect painting, using every color in the most perfect way. She was still missing a few—how many colors were there left to discover? She wasn't sure—but it was already so beautiful it hurt.

The sky was blue and her hair was yellow and flowers were orange and leaves were green, and everything was perfect.

But Natsu…Natsu was still grey.

He was smiling at her, giving her this perfect little crooked grin. His smile was so big there were tiny little wrinkles by his eyes, and everything about him _screamed_ comfort and warmth and safety. And Lucy knew, right then and there, without a doubt, that Natsu was her best friend and that she was meant to be here, with him, right now.

He held out his hand, and Lucy took it gladly, and he tugged her towards the guild hall. They took off jogging, laughing as they went, because she was so happy that she was alive in a world so bright and beautiful and he was so happy that Lucy was smiling again, even if that smile of hers was only gone for a quick moment.

And in that moment, everything made sense.

She knew what she was supposed to do. She knew why she was given the ability to see color. She knew it, deep in her soul.

Lucy had to know what color Natsu was. His eyes, his lips, his cheeks when his face got too hot, his hair…she had to know it. That was the point of all of this. He was her best friend, he was her safety blanket, he was _home_. And she had to know his colors.

Screw seeing a rainbow. Lucy wanted to see Natsu.

* * *

 ** _A/N:_** ** _Short ass chapter, yes, I know…I'm really sorry. And I'm sorry this chapter took so long to come out and it sucked and I'm just the worst, I know. FORGIVE ME. I've just been crazy busy working to save up money and I didn't have the energy or the inspiration to write but I figured I just had to get the chapter out and over with so my writers block would end. HOPEFULLY THIS TAKES CARE OF MY WRITERS BLOCK. Gotta get the ball rollin'._**

 ** _Anywho, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR 114 COMMENTS/REVIEWS! I am so completely shocked by the response I have gotten for this story and I'm so glad you guys are telling me what you think! I love it, keep those comments coming, they really motivate me to write 333333_**

 ** _Ps….if everything goes to plan with my ideas for the next couple chapters, things are going to start getting a biiiiiit more interesting ;) ;)_**


	13. Hands

She felt dizzy. Like the whole world was spinning, like it was tipsy-turvy, like everything was swirling around her. But…in a good way, if that made any sense.

It was like she was drunk. Like she'd had one too many drinks. Her ears were hot and her skin was flushed and she had this stupid smile on her lips, one that she couldn't wipe off no matter how hard she focused on keeping a straight face.

And Lucy honestly would've thought she was drunk—except she'd woken up like this, completely sober.

She'd rolled out of bed with this stupid grin on her face, this weird feeling of weightlessness pouring through her. She'd showered, gotten dressed and ready for the day, and made her way to the guild hall feeling as though she were walking on clouds.

Perhaps it was the colors that day, making her feel drunk and happy and strange. The blues were bluer than they'd ever been; the oranges were so vivid she had to look twice at every flower she'd passed. Even her hair was brighter today. Everything was just so…happy.

Or maybe it was because today was the day of the sakura festival. Today was the day the trees would illuminate, set the park ablaze with glowing lights. Maybe it was because she wanted to see if the rumors were true—would the trees set off a dazzling display of color? Would she be able to see the festival, in all of its magnificence?

Today was a glorious day, Lucy had decided. She was so happy, so absolutely drunk with happiness, and she didn't have a care in the world. Everything about today was perfect, she could tell already.

"So, Lucy's drunk."

Lucy frowned, snapping herself out of her inner monologue. "Eh?" She turned to look at the boy beside her. "Am not."

Natsu gave her a plain look, his cheeks stuffed with food. "Look at you—you're loaded."

Erza shook her head. "This early, Lucy? I hate to say it, but it's a tad early."

"Shaddup," Cana spoke up, rolling her eyes. "It's a perfectly acceptable time to start drinking. I started an hour ago." She took a sip out of her mug.

Gray made a face. "It's only nine-thirty in the morning, Cana."

The girl blinked back at him as she finished off her mug of beer. "And?"

Lucy made a face, ignoring her friends' silly conversation. "I'm not drunk."

Natsu snorted. "Look at your face!" He narrowed his eyes and leaned in, smirking as he stared deep into her gaze. "You're all _smiley_."

"So I can't be smiley and sober?"

He smiled, amused. "You're never this smiley."

"I'm in a good mood!"

Juvia took a seat beside Gray, setting her plate of food down on the table. As she'd approached, she'd been listening in to the conversation. "She's not drunk—I'd know _that_ look anywhere."

Everyone at the table turned to Juvia. "What look?"

Juvia—who Lucy _just_ realized had hair that was the most beautiful shade of blue—had a small smile on her lips. She picked at her blueberry muffin, eating it slowly. "Isn't it obvious? The girl's in love."

"In _love_?" Cana murmured.

Erza's head whipped around so she was facing Lucy. "Who are you in love with, Lucy?"

Everyone seemed extremely interested in the idea of Lucy being in love—suddenly, all eyes were on her. The girls began to hound her, asking her questions about her newfound love, if she had a new boyfriend, if she had found _the one_. Hell, even Gray seemed a little interested; his eyes didn't glaze over like she would've thought they would.

The only person who didn't seem intrigued was Natsu; he proceeded to stuff his food into his mouth at an impressive rate.

"Oh my god, how come you didn't tell me?" Levy cried, a grin on her lips. "What's his name? I've gotta do a background check on him."

"Is he hot?" Cana called out.

Erza crossed her arms. "I need to talk to this young man immediately."

Lucy's face flushed with heat immediately, and she shook her head, flustered. "I—well, jesus, you guys, I—"

"Is he your soul mate?" One of the girls shouted.

Now, Gray spoke up, his dark eyes piqued with interest. "Can you see colors, now?"

His question seemed to put a hush across the whole table, and everyone leaned in closer to hear her response. This seemed like the most important question, the one everyone wanted to hear. If she saw color, then her supposed new man would be the one.

Natsu even paused stuffing his face, giving her a side-eyed glance as he chewed the build up of food in his mouth.

Lucy began to sweat. Was she supposed to lie? Technically, she _could_ see color—but it wasn't the way they all thought. They thought she'd met a guy, fallen in love, and now had the ability to see color, but…they were wrong. She'd seen color—but only partially—and she had yet to figure out who the guy was. It was so backwards!

She couldn't lie to her new friends. It would be wrong. But she didn't exactly want to tell them the truth…

Not that she couldn't trust them—she could, she knew that now—but she didn't want everyone to know that her entire experience with color was wrong and out of the ordinary. She didn't want them to obsess over the fact that she didn't know who her soulmate was yet. She didn't want them to go nuts trying to figure out who it was. She didn't want them to try to make sense about her lack of immediate technicolor sight.

Lucy blanked. What was she supposed to say? She didn't want to lie, didn't want to tell the truth…

And so, she just stuttered.

"I—well—you know, I just…" She trailed off, her gaze falling to the table. She was sweating incredibly hard, her hands clammy and sticky. She didn't like having the pressure on her, didn't like being forced to lie or tell the truth. "I…"

Natsu spoke up, voice muffled by the food in his mouth. His eyebrows had tugged together slightly, a faint little frown clouding up his features. "Leave her alone, you guys," He muttered, giving the whole table a glare. "You're stressing Lucy out."

Lucy's face was still hot like fire, and she kept her gaze down, her sweaty hands balled into fists. She didn't dare meet her friends' eyes—she feared her expression would give too much away. One second of eye contact and every single one of her friends would know the truth, it was written right there on her face: Lucy Heartfilia could see color.

So she kept her head down, didn't dare look up. She couldn't. She wasn't ready to spill the beans about this, not yet. The timing wasn't right.

Everyone at the table kind of grumbled under their breath as Natsu chastised them, because they all knew he was right—they were pressuring her, forcing her to tell thing she clearly wasn't ready to tell. They'd pried too all felt a bit bad and apologized to Lucy, one by one, then stood and left, leaving Natsu and Lucy alone at the big table.

Lucy felt awful. She didn't want to lie to her new friends. She wished she was comfortable with talking about it, like the rest of them were. She wished she could spill the truth about the whole situation. But part of her was still rather closed up about the concept of color—because to her, color was something so intimate, so special and something to be guarded carefully. It was her childhood dreams, her discussions with her mother, what she'd looked forward to all of these years…

Color was special to Lucy, and she couldn't just tell everyone about it when she still didn't understand it fully herself.

Lucy was so conflicted—the urge to be honest with her friends was in direct conflict with the need to guard something so intimate—that she was shaking. Her eyes were on the ground, her hands balled into fists, and her arms were shaking.

But the next thing she knew, Natsu's big hands were resting on top of her balled up fists, and the warmth radiating from them soothed her instantly. Every second his hands held hers, the tension and the conflicting emotions seemed to be pulled right out of her pores. Her hands relaxed, falling out of the tense little balls they'd been forced into; he slid his fingers in between hers, letting the soft heat of the flames inside of him calm her down.

Lucy glanced up, meeting his gaze.

Natsu's eyes were soft, gentle; he was giving her a faint, soft smile. Still a hint of goofiness in his features—but mostly, to Lucy's surprise, mature understanding. "You okay?" He asked, voice a little deeper than usual.

Lucy blinked, nodding at him. "Yeah," She murmured, voice softer than she would've liked it to be. "They were all just asking so many questions and It was all so much at once, and—" Her words came out fast, quick, like she needed to justify her mini panic attack.

Natsu smirked. "Relax, Luce. You don't have to explain yourself."

That shut her up for a second. Lucy blinked, then smiled shyly at the boy. "Thanks, Natsu."

He shrugged, still holding her hands. "Anytime, Luce."

Lucy glanced down at their intertwined fingers, her face instantly getting warm again. His touch was soft, gentle; his skin was warm, his internal blaze controlled so as to not hurt Lucy's skin. There was something distinctly intimate in the way he leaned in towards her, held her, cared for her in that moment—and it made her face hot.

And for a split second, Lucy considered that maybe _Natsu_ was her soul mate. Maybe he was the one setting her world on fire with color. Maybe he was the one she'd been destined to meet this entire time.

But before her mind could make sense of the thought, before she could organize her thoughts and really start to consider it, she was interrupted.

A voice cut through the moment, slicing through the intimacy and shattering it completely.

"The festivities are starting, Lucy! Are you guys comin'?"

Lucy glanced up. Gray was smiling down at her. She nodded; Natsu pulled her to her feet and then released her, both of their hands awkwardly falling to their sides. Instantly, a chill flooded Lucy's veins, her body rather icy without Natsu's constant warmth echoing through her.

"Of course!" Lucy replied to Gray, the excitement beginning to build inside of her yet again. "What's first?"

Lucy and Natsu walked alongside Gray, making their way out of the guild hall, weaving through the streets of Magnolia towards the park in the middle of town. Gray began to explain the festivities to Lucy—the picnic, the games, and the tree viewing at the end of the night—as they made their way.

The entire walk, Lucy couldn't help but notice the lingering heat in her cheeks. She peeked over at Natsu as Gray rambled on, hoping to see if he was having the same reaction as her. To her surprise, there wasn't a single hint of darker grey in his cheeks—but the boy seemed to be blinking down at his hand, touching his palm where their skin had come into contact.

Lucy's heart thudded heavily in her chest, and it sent her brain spiraling in confusion.

Was this… _attraction?_

No. Couldn't be. It was _Natsu_. She couldn't have a crush on _Natsu_ …it just wouldn't make sense.

Right?

Lucy shook her head, forcing the thoughts out of her mind. She had too much to focus on today—too much activities to take part in, too much fun to have. She couldn't plague herself with thoughts of possible romance with her best friend. It wasn't right.

And so, Lucy headed off into the park, desperately trying not to think of how much she craved Natsu's touch.

 _ **A/N:** **Another short chapter. My apologies! This one is short for a reason, though - the next chapter connects directly to it but I didn't want it to be one massive chapter, so I kind of split it up best I could. Hope thats okay! Next chapter should be up pretty soon, hopefully tomorrow or the day after that! Look for it! Super big thank you to my readers and my commenters, I absolutely love reviews and they inspire me to keep writing so keep reviewing please! THANK YOU SO MUCH 3**_


	14. Pong

"Lucy! Over here!"

Lucy's eyes snapped over, searching through the crowds of guild members, trying to locate the voice that had called out to her. It took her a moment—it seemed the entire guild had showed up at once; everyone was milling around and chatting happily—but her gaze finally landed on her target.

Levy was sitting on a checkered picnic blanket, a picnic basket sat neatly beside her. She was waving her hands, grinning over at Lucy, her blue hair—Lucy had already recognized Levy had blue hair, but it was particularly pretty right now with the sunlight streaming through it—waving in the wind.

Lucy couldn't help but grin at her friend, the excitement of the impending festival beginning to itch at her. This would be her first festival as a member of the guild, as part of the family. Finally, she _belonged_. It was something she'd dreamed of for so long.

The entire day sounded like a blast. Fun in the sun with her best friends? A delicious lunch, made with tender love and care by Mira? The chance to hunker down in the park as the sun set and watch the sakura trees light up the sky— _possibly in a variety of colors_?

Lucy was downright pumped about the idea of the trees being beautiful colors. Part of her was skeptical about the rumors—what were the chances? Why would trees glow rainbow?—but most of her was absolutely sold on the idea. Besides, if the rumors weren't true, all of these tourist couples wouldn't travel the entire world to see the trees, right? The trees must glow rainbow—Lucy was determined to find out.

Of course, she would only be able to see the few colors her eyes could manage, but that was fine with her. Even seeing those few colors blew her away on a daily basis. Seeing them in such a beautiful setting might make her cry.

"Hi, Levy!" Lucy cried back, a grin on her lips. She stepped towards her friend, politely excusing herself through the crowds.

Lucy had lost Natsu and Gray a while back—they'd gotten swallowed up in the crowd of guild members—so she was thankful that she'd located Levy so quickly. She belonged in the guild, sure, but it was still nice to know she had someone to sit with.

The crowd parted slightly for the blonde as she made her way over to Levy's picnic blanket. As the bodies of her guildmates moved, Lucy's view of the picnic blanket became more clear. To her surprise, there was more than one body sitting before her.

Levy…and Gajeel?

Lucy's eyebrows raised slightly, surprised, as she took a seat on the blanket. A short while ago, Levy and Gajeel had hated each other. They couldn't stand being in the same room as one another. But somewhere along the line, things had changed a little bit. Not much, but enough for Lucy to realize that the two had become almost… _friends_.

Incredible how quickly things could change.

"Hi, guys. What's going on?" Lucy asked, glancing around at the ruckus. Everyone was laying out picnic blankets all across the park, gathering in close so they could hear Makarov's introductory speech to the festival.

Levy shrugged; her cheeks were flushed with a slightly dark grey tone. "Festival day is finally here! Aren't you excited, Lucy?"

Any awkwardness from the start of the day—when nearly everyone had embarrassed Lucy and asked if she'd found her soulmate—was gone. All of Lucy's friends had apologized for bothering her so much, and she was keen on letting the moment slide. Besides, any hope that no one would recall her hesitation was a relief. If they remembered her stuttering, they might jump to the conclusion that she actually _could_ see colors…

"Of course! I'm hoping to win the grand prize in the bingo game."

Gajeel crossed his arms. "Not likely! Me and shrimp here are gonna blow everyone away."

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "And how exactly do _both_ of you intend to win?"

Levy grinned. "We're competing as a team."

"As a team, huh?" Lucy inquired, opting to give Levy a funny look. "That's totally cheating."

"Nope!" The blue haired girl cried, an evil smile on her lips. She rubbed her hands together diabolically. "I already talked to the Master about it—convinced him it was just a smart move strategically. He said he would allow it."

"That's right!" Gajeel crowed, giving the small girl a high-five. "Two pairs of eyes are better than one. We're gonna kill this competition!"

"Yeah!" Levy growled back fiercely. "We're gonna nab that prize."

Lucy snorted. Well, they were certainly determined. It didn't really bother her—she was just glad they were getting along. She didn't like seeing two of her friends bicker all of the time.

The trio chatted for a bit about nothing in particular—the lovely weather, strategies for bingo—as the entire guild settled into the park. Mira came around with trays of ice cold lemonade, offering a glass to each member of the guild, making sure everyone was comfortable. Lucy happily took one, her face messing up into a grimace once the sour taste hit her tongue.

Soon, they were joined another person: Juvia.

"Hi, everyone!" She'd greeted, giving the group a little wave. "It's so nice out today, isn't it?"

"Hi, Juvia!" Lucy smiled at the girl. "Come, sit with us."

Juvia smiled graciously, taking a seat beside Lucy. She was wearing a bold blue dress—one that Lucy hadn't seen before.

"Is that a new dress?" Levy inquired, on the same wavelength as Lucy. "It looks so nice on you!"

The girl let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah, it is. It's my first festival as a guild member, too, so I thought I should dress the part."

Gajeel winked at her. "Maybe Gray'll notice."

The grey in Juvia's cheeks darkened, and her eyes dropped to the ground shyly. Her lips seemed to twist down slightly, reflecting the sadness in her gaze. "I'm trying not to get my hopes up," She murmured softly. "I always just end up disappointed."

Lucy's eyebrows pulled together slightly; she patted Juvia's shoulder. "Well… _hey_. Just…don't think about him, alright? This is _your_ first festival with the guild. This is _your_ day. Just have fun and enjoy yourself. Forget about Gray for a day. This one's for you."

Juvia sighed. "You think?"

"Yeah!" Levy encouraged. "Enough focusing on him. Focus on yourself for once!"

Juvia's blue eyes searched the group, a little bit wider than before. She looked at Lucy, who gave her an encouraging nod; she looked to Levy, who gave her a cheerful thumbs up. Next, Juvia glanced at Gajeel expectantly, looking for one more piece of encouragement.

Gajeel's face was blank.

Levy elbowed him in the side, making him grunt out in pain.

"Ow! What the— _oh_. Um, yeah, Juvia. Forget ice-boy. Just have fun today."

Gajeel's statement seemed to ignite a fire in the water mage. Her hands balled up into strong little fists, and she gave her friends a nod. "Yeah—you're right. I should be having _fun_ , not worrying about Gray. I'm in this guild, too!" She let out a little huff of breath through her nose, almost as if she was giving herself a mental pep-talk. "Thanks, you guys. You're the best."

"Anytime, Juvia." Levy replied, proud of her fellow guildmate.

"I'll always be here to motivate you!" Lucy replied in agreement.

Juvia stood, a fierce look washing over her expression. Her voice was rough, angry, stubborn and tenacious. She was going to have _fun_ today. She was going to think about _herself_. She wasn't going to be the mopey girl in love with a boy who would never love her back—no, today, Juvia was in love with herself. "I'm going to get some lemonade!" She spat, her tone unyielding. She stormed off, a new woman.

Lucy snorted, watching her friend peel across the park, determined to have fun. "Good for her. She deserves it."

Mira's voice broke through the hum of the crowd, silencing everyone. "Attention, everyone! Welcome to the beginning of the sakura tree festival! Today we will be playing a variety of games—including the ever-anticipated annual bingo game—and we will also be taking part in a guild-wide dance! There will be tons of food and drinks available for all of you to enjoy today, so don't limit yourself! Later tonight, we will all be making our way down to the center of the park to view the beautiful sakura trees! Doesn't that sound like fun?"

The crowd let out whoops and hollers in response to the day's activities.

Cana seemed rather pleased by the mention of unlimited drinks. "Where's the beers at?" She cried, finishing off a drink. "I'm feelin' thirsty!"

Mira laughed, smiling down at her guildmates from the small stage that had been set up for her. "Now, now—before things get too wild, I'd like everyone to give Master Makarov a big, enormous hand!"

The crowd erupted even louder this time, hollering as the Master made his way up to the stage, joining the beautiful Mirajane.

"Good evening, children!" He shouted, giving a wave to a few guildmembers down below. "Whose ready to party?"

The crowd went wild; Lucy couldn't help but laugh and clap along in the fun. Everything was just so exciting—the guild was everything she'd ever dreamed of.

It was so bizarre, thinking about her past. Being stuck up in the estate, living a bleak, miserable life, _dreaming_ of what Fairy Tail was like…and now, she was here. She was in the guild. Going to the guild's festivals, sitting with her new friends, chatting with guild members she used to read about in magazines.

She was _here_. She was living her dream.

There were colors in the sky and in the plants and in _people_ , and she was here, in her favorite guild chatting with her favorite mages. She was friends with Erza Scarlet and Gray Fullbuster. She'd chatted with Gildarts.

She was best friends with Salamander.

Lucy's eyes filled up with tears, and she tried her best to stop the wetness from spilling over onto her cheeks. She looked up at the Master as he gave his welcoming speech, as he talked about the meaning of _guild_ and _family_. And she couldn't make sense of how _perfect_ everything had become—her life was everything she had dreamed.

As Master finished up his speech, his eyes flickered over to Lucy.

"And, today, I would like to welcome our _new_ members. The newest members of our family who are experiencing the fun for the first time today. This is their first time participating in our festivities as a part of the family. I would like to personally welcome these individuals into my home, into my family, with open and loving arms. Because that is what Fairy Tail does—we embrace those who need a hug, we welcome those who have nothing to return to. And we do it with pride. Because we are a family!"

The crowd of guild members let out hoots and hollers.

"Fairy Tail, let's dedicate this day to two members who are taking part in festivities for the first time today: Juvia Lockser and Lucy Heartfilia. Enjoy the fun, ladies! This is just the beginning!" Master gave Lucy a wink, very obviously noticing how wet her eyes seemed to be.

The crowd went absolutely nuts, and everybody stood and cheered. Lucy couldn't help but smile—her smile was so big her cheeks hurt—at her newfound family.

All of the colors Lucy could see seemed to much brighter today, and she knew why: because she was in love with life.

* * *

"Alright, everyone! Pick a partner—it's officially time for the beer pong tournament!"

Lucy made a face—she was god awful at throwing balls into cups—and let out a sigh. There really wasn't a point in her taking part in the tournament—she was a curse. Her hand-eye coordination was absolute garbage, and she would drag down whoever her partner was. She would do the right thing and opt out.

Levy turned to her left, giving Gajeel a look. He gave her a nod in return as they silently agreed to be one another's partners.

Lucy blinked, impressed. Honestly, those two were really on the same wavelength today—they were just _clicking_. Bickering here and there, sure, but for the most part, they were basically two peas in a pod. Lucy couldn't help but admire their newfound friendship.

Mira was up on stage, jotting down the names of partners and placing them on the tournament board. Each partnership was randomly assigned a team to compete with—whoever lost was out, and whoever won continued on to the next randomly assigned competition, until there was only one winning team remaining. That remaining team would be considered the winner and would be awarded a golden goblet.

Master stood next to Mira, addressing the crowd as she wrote down team names. "Would anyone like to opt out of the event? If you don't you will be automatically signed up with another single person."

Lucy sighed, mentally admitting defeat, and raised her hand.

But, before Master could see her opt out, Lucy was roughly interrupted. Suddenly, something clapped around Lucy's mouth, preventing her from calling out and voicing her decision to opt out; something else grabbed her waving hand and tugged it down, gently pushing it against her side and holding it there.

" _Not a chance_ ," The voice hissed in her ear, amused. "You're not running away from this one."

Lucy frowned, already recognizing the voice. She spun around, wheeling herself to face the _mystery person_. "And why not?"

Natsu stood before her, crossing his arms as he smirked at her. "Because—you're gonna be my partner."

She shook her head. "Nuh-uh. No way. I'm terrible at this kinda thing."

The boy shrugged. "Who cares? It's just for fun."

"Yeah, except we're totally gonna lose! And that means we will have to drink all of our beers—and _that_ means I'm gonna get drunk because I'm a total lightweight." Lucy hauled herself up to a standing position and began to walk away, intent on going up to the master and opting out directly.

Natsu followed beside her, starting to whine. "Aw, c'mon, Luce! We'll be a great team!"

"No."

He twisted his features into a sad, whiny puppy-dog face. He reached down and grabbed her wrists, forcing her to stop and look into his eyes, hoping to change her mind.

And boy, did he ever.

Now, Lucy wasn't the kind of girl to be easily won over, but Natsu's tactic was rather… _persuasive_ , to say the least. His eyes were so big and conveyed his disappointment so thoroughly; his little lip was jutted out, pouty and sad. Even his gentle grip on her wrists—the contact made her veins buzz like he'd set them on fire—seemed to teeter her over the edge, make her want to change her mind.

She tried to stay strong. Honestly, she did. But there he was with those eyes and those lips and his _touch_ , and his stupidly cute expression sort of melted her on the spot.

Then, he muttered, "Pleeeeeease, Lucy? For _me_?"

And that was that. She was screwed. There wasn't a chance in _heaven_ she could deny that boy anything after he pulled _that_ face.

Lucy couldn't even remember why she had wanted to opt out in the first place.

"Ugh," She sighed. "Fine."

Natsu released his grip on her wrists—was it weird that she didn't really want him to?—and pumped his fist in the air. " _Yes_!" He snarled with excitement. He spun on his heel and ran over to Mira, telling her that he and Lucy were partners before the deadline to sign up.

He made his way back to the girl, tossing his arm over her shoulder.

"No worries, Luce. This'll be fun."

* * *

Lucy peered around, a little too caught up in her surroundings. Scattered throughout the park were several tabletops—they were floating; someone was sustaining them up evenly in the air with magic—covered in cups filled with beer. Teams were competing, tossing the little ping pong balls at the cups, letting out cries of agony when they missed.

To the left, Juvia and Cana were currently taking on Elfman and Evergreen. Lucy wasn't really sure who was going to win that one—everything seemed rather tied up. What she _did_ know, though, was that Juvia was having a fantastic time—she'd never seen the blue haired girl with such a big smile before.

To Lucy's right, there was a fierce battle going on: Erza and Gray were currently rallying against Bisca and Alzack. This fight was _also_ a close one—Erza and Gray's determination were strong, perfectly on par with Bisca and Alzack's perfect accuracy.

Lucy felt a nudge to her side, bringing her focus back to what lay before her: her and Natsu's first challenge in the tournament.

"Just so everyone knows," Lucy said, speaking up, "I want it to be very clear that this tournament was rigged. What are the chances our first match up was against _Laxus and Gildarts_?"

Laxus smirked.

Gildarts let out a snort. "Should've picked a better teammate, little Lucy."

"Hey!" Natsu growled. "I'm good at this."

Laxus grinned. "Then prove it."

Natsu rolled his eyes. He raised his hand, and flicked his wrist; the ball flew from his fingers gracefully across the table, landing directly in a cup. A cocky smirk spread across his lips, and he glanced over at Lucy. "See? Nothin' to it."

Gildarts grabbed the cup and chugged it back without hesitation.

Lucy gave him a weak smile in response. Sure, of _course_ he could nail a beer pong shot what with his incredible reflexes and dragon-like abilities. The chances of her making this shot was near zero. This was a huge mistake. "I don't think I can do that."

"Of course you can!" Natsu reassured her, taking a step closer to her. He lifted her hand and elbow, altering her form until she was in the right position to toss the ball. "Just keep your eyes on the cup you want to put the ball in, and focus on that spot. Easy peasy."

Lucy gulped, tossing the ball gently, hoping her arc was correct.

The ball sailed over the cups, flying over Laxus' shoulders; it fell to the grass below. Lucy cringed, head dropping in shame.

"I'm so bad at this. Natsu, we're going to be so drunk. So, _so_ drunk."

His lips were curled up into that cute little smirk of his, and his eyes searched her face. For a split second—perhaps Lucy was just dreaming this up?—his eyes dipped down to her lips, but flashed back up to her eyes just as fast. "I don't think I'd mind being drunk with you."

Lucy's face would've gotten all hot and stupid—but Laxus and Gildarts tossed the balls back, nailing their shots in the cups they'd been aiming for.

Lucy cringed, grabbing one of the cups, pinching her nose, and chugging it back. Natsu sucked his drink back easily, not nearly as bothered by the burning sensation in his throat as Lucy was.

The game continued on for a bit longer—Lucy missed every shot but one; Natsu got a couple good shots in—but ultimately, the duo lost to Laxus and Gildarts. Lucy's prediction about being drunk only became partially true—she was just a little buzzed, thank goodness—because Natsu had been a gentleman and stepped up, drinking over half of the cups of beer so that Lucy didn't have to have her full share.

"Eliminated in the first round," Natsu muttered, pouting as he and Lucy took a seat on the edge of the stage, watching the other games take place. "That's rough."

"Hey—I warned you about what would happen if I was your partner."

He snorted. "True. I don't mind. It was worth it watching you try to chug back all that beer."

Lucy made a face. "Meanie."

Natsu laughed. "Not a beer drinker, huh?"

She tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "I'm more of a wine girl, myself. What about you?"

He shrugged. "I like beer. Not much of a drinker, though."

"Why not?"

"I'd rather waste my money on food."

Lucy smiled. "Why am I not surprised?"

The two chatted on and on as the beer pong games continued. Time passed and games came to an end, and the tournament continued on. As the teams began to dwindle down, the guild began to circle around the few games remaining, cheering on each side.

Eventually, it came down to only two remaining teams: Gray and Erza, and Juvia and Cana.

The final game took place on the stage, so every member of the guild view it in all of its glory.

Honestly, it was a pretty ugly sight—by this point, each person had chugged back so much beer that they were swaying all over the place.

Erza, despite her intense determination and focus, was beginning to stumble and sway; Gray's eyes were red and bleary, a stupid little drunken grin permanently etched onto his lips. Juvia was a giggly drunk, and she had to lean on the table to stay standing. Cana, however, was totally fine—her reflexes were razor sharp.

"It's a—it's an unfair advantage!" Gray complained. "Cana's an alcoholic!"

Gildarts let out a cry from the audience. "That's my girl! Atta be!"

"Okay, participants!" Mira called as she handed out the balls to the players. "Begin the match!"

Everything started out as expected: everyone missed their shots except for Cana. She nailed shot after shot, forcing Gray and Erza to chug back even more alcohol. The crowd was going absolutely nuts, enthralled by Cana's tolerance to drinks.

"We're never gonna win," Gray muttered, shaking his head. He glanced at Erza. "Maybe we should just forfeit."

Erza hiccuped. "Forfeit?" She blinked. "Never!"

"C'mon, Erza—they're killin' us!"

Cana snorted. "Only wimps quit in the final round!"

Gray turned to look at his competition, taking a long second to balance himself after doing so. "It's just stupid—Erza can't even see straight. Hell, even Juvia can't stay standing. You're carrying the team."

The crowd erupted into _ooooooh_ 's as the drama between the two final teams intensified.

"Hey!" Juvia shot back, no longer giggling. "I'm helping, too!"

Gray gave Juvia a look. "Listen, Juvia—you definitely helped her out. But she's the one winning this final match."

Cana crossed her arms, then looked at Juvia. "I don't like his tone."

Juvia frowned. "Me either."

"How about this?" Cana spat, turning to glare at Gray. "You and Juvia—one on one. That'll decide it."

Juvia looked at her partner. " _What?_ "

Cana gave her a nod. "No worries. You've got this. You're right—we _both_ carry this team. Time to prove him wrong."

Juvia's eyes were wide. "But, Cana, what if I can't?"

"You can do this."

It took the blue haired girl a moment. She looked out into the crowd, her eyes locking onto Lucy's. She remembered what her friends had told her earlier—that today was for her, that today was a day of fun, not sadness. Today was the day Juvia loved herself.

And that meant taking chances.

"Let's do it," Juvia replied with a nod, voice cold. She turned to face Gray, eyebrow pricking up, challenging him. "You in?"

Gray's expression was hesitant. "Are you sure?"

Juvia grinned at him—but it wasn't the usual smile she flashed him. No, this smile was intense, determined and ready for a fight. "Absolutely."

Gray blinked at the girl before him, hardly recognizing her. This fire, this intensity…it was so different than her usual behaviour. She wasn't doing this for _him_ —she was doing this for her. It was different. New.

The corners of his lips tangled upwards into a grin.

Juvia lifted her arm, tossing her ball; it spiralled in the air, landing directly in Gray's first cup.

The crowd cheered out her name. Lucy chanted out extra loud, hoping her passion would help Juvia win the cup.

After chugging back his drink, Gray smirked at Juvia, shooting his ball, nailing it. The ball landed directly into one of her cups. Juvia ,ughed, impressed, and sucked back her drink.

The game went on and on, back and forth, tied up completely—until Juvia sunk the final ball, defeating Gray. The crowd went absolutely wild; everyone hopped up on stage and lifted Juvia up onto their shoulders, chanting her name.

Lucy, absolutely thrilled, turned and tossed her arms around Natsu, cheering loudly. Natsu hugged Lucy back, shouting out congratulations to Juvia—and telling Gray he could suck it.

Confetti sprayed into the air—Mira had really come prepared—and Cana cracked open a bottle of champagne spraying the foam into the crowd, absolutely overjoyed that her partner had won the tournament for them.

Once everyone had settled down, there was an official award ceremony where Juvia and Cana were awarded the golden goblet.

There was a prize for Gray, too—but for whatever reason, he'd disappeared during the celebrations and wasn't around to collect it.

Natsu hopped on stage to receive the prize for Gray—but he decided to make a speech instead.

The boy cleared his throat and leaned into the microphone. "Ahem. Can everyone hear me? Alright. I'd just like to thank Mira for the opportunity to take part in this awesome beer pong tournament. I would also like to thank Gray for not being here—I'm guessing he's out crying somewhere because he got his ass whooped Juvia—because I am absolutely stealing this prize. Oh, and I'd like to thank the beautiful Lucy Heartfilia for being my beer pong partner. Even though we were eliminated almost immediately. Cheers!"

Lucy cringed, her face getting hot when he called her beautiful. She rolled her eyes when the boy joined her in the crowd, sitting beside her on the picnic blanket.

Was it bad that all Lucy could think about was how his elbow was touching hers?

She shook her head, forcing herself to listen to Mira's congratulation speech, trying to get her mind off of Natsu's _beautiful_ comment.

Except she couldn't. And her heart was pounding really hard. And her throat felt really tight.

 _No, no, no, no._ It's _Natsu_. Salamander. He was her best friend—she couldn't think of him like this. She had to stop. It wasn't appropriate.

Lucy slammed her eyes shut, taking deep breaths, making herself _really_ listen to what Mira was announcing. She'd have to get through the rest of the day without thinking of Natsu. That wasn't so hard, was it? She'd just have to avoid him, is all. Not come into physical contact with him. That wouldn't be so difficult.

"Alright, everyone! Onto the next activity— _a dancing contest!_ Everyone pick a partner!"

Natsu's hand immediately clamped down onto Lucy's tugging her into a standing position.

Lucy let out a cry. "Gah! Why?"

Natsu tugged her up, pulling her into his chest. He wrapped his arms around her waist, tossing her hands up onto his shoulders. "You'll be my dance partner, right?"

Their faces were so close Lucy could feel his hot breath fanning across her face. His eyes were big, wide and cute, and he flashed her a goofy little smile.

"Of course," She squeaked back, desperately trying to forget how their bodies were touching. "I'd love to."

 _ **A/N** **: Abrupt ending, I know. But at least this chapter was longer, right? Riiiiiight!? Next chapter will pick up immediately after this one, much like the last. Might be a couple days before it's out cuz I've gotta work all week! BUT THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS! KEEP EM COMIN. I love you guys so much. Thank you for everything.**_

 _ **I hope some Juvia/Gray development is alright with you!?**_


	15. No Longer Lonely

Lucy had known how to dance for a long time—as long as she could remember.

She'd been taught at a young age. Her father had hired a dance teacher to come to the estate and give Lucy personalized lessons. She'd started young, learned the basics of each dance, memorized the steps; as she'd grown older, the forced lessons had continued and she'd only grown into her elegance. Now, dancing was muscle memory. She could waltz or tango, any kind of dance anyone wanted. She could bend and twist her body in every which way, moving to the music perfectly.

She'd always hated her dance lessons. Not that she hated to dance—really, she'd always loved moving to the music—but it had transformed from a fun activity to something rather…lonesome. Particularly after her mother passed.

Her father insisted on the dance lessons, always. It was a rule that little Lucy could not break. So, she would go to these lessons and learn these beautiful dances and then be forced back to her studies, her empty bedroom. She didn't have a friend, a person to dance with.

Lucy began to dance with the staff. She'd beg them to just take a two minute pause on their duties and chores, just to squeeze in a quick dance. The staff always agreed—they loved Lucy—and took time out of their day to dance with her. Naturally, this didn't last long—once Lucy's father found out that his little princess was making _friends_ with the _staff_ …well, that was that.

Lucy would dance alone, and that was all.

So, to be here, to be surrounded by crowds of friends, dancing with a _boy_? That was absolutely incredible.

Lucy wished her father could see this. She wished he could see her with people, laughing and chatting and dancing. She wished he could see her going on missions and getting to know people and _living_. Most of all, she wished her father could see her smile.

Not the fake smile she'd put on for years at the estate—but her real smile. The genuine, hopeful smile that she couldn't hold back. It was similar to the smile she'd had when her mother was alive—but stronger. Happier.

"I've got something important to tell you," Natsu whispered, leaning forward so his lips were against Lucy's ear. The crowd was so rowdy and noisy that he had to come that close just for the girl to hear him. "Promise not to laugh?"

They had yet to begin their dance—Mira was setting up the music, and then would proceed with telling the crowd the rules to the competition. Everyone was paired off—well, mostly everyone; there were a few of the older fellows sitting on the sidelines—and chattering excitedly, arguing about who would win the competition.

Lucy nodded. "Promise."

She could hear the smile in his voice. "I can't dance."

Lucy leaned back, lips spreading into a wide grin as she laughed at the boy. "Oh, really!"

Natsu smirked at her. "You said you wouldn't laugh."

"Right. Sorry. Well, why'd you _insist_ on being my partner if you can't dance?" She couldn't help but grin as she teased him. "You know, I could've paired up with someone who had some skills. You're blowing my chances."

"Maybe that was my plan all along."

"You're evil!"

"Can't have you _winning_. You'll never shut up about it." He smiled at her sweetly.

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Jerk."

The playful conversation between the pair was interrupted once Mira hopped back on stage, ready to explain the rules of the competition to her fellow guild members.

"Okay!" Mira cried, smiling down at her friends. "So, this is how this is going to go! Once the music starts, all couples will begin dancing! Our judges will begin eliminating pairs whose dancing fails to impress them. And how exactly do you impress our judges? Why don't we ask them!" She pointed to the far side of the stage, turning everyone's attention to the competition's judges.

Master Makarov, Laxus and Erza all stood to the side, giving a wave to the crowd.

Erza stepped forward. "I thought it only fair to give everyone a chance in this competition, so I opted out and became a judge. You're all welcome."

"Okay, judges, what do our dancers need to do to stay in the game?"

Makarov cleared his throat. "I'd like to see some happy faces. If you're not having fun, what's the point?"

Laxus spoke next. "My rule is simple: don't stop dancing. You stop and take a break, and you're _cut_."

Last, Erza spoke. "All I ask that you dance with energy and passion. If I don't feel the passion in your dancing, I will eliminate you."

"Thank you, judges!" Mira called out, still smiling. "Now, everyone—grab your partner and get ready to dance! Let's get going!"

The music began to play—an upbeat little jingle—and everyone suddenly began to sway into motion, laughing and chatting. The judges hung back—they were going to wait until everyone had found their groove before they began to eliminate people—and watched from the stage.

Lucy turned to Natsu, about to begin dancing—but she noticed that his body was incredibly tense and stiff. His expression was distant, even a little dark. She blinked, cocking her head to the side. "You alright?"

He turned his head to the side, crossing his arms. "Yep."

Lucy snorted, poking him. "C'mon, grumpy—what's the matter?"

"I already told you!" Natsu grumbled under his breath. His voice dropped, tone low, and his words came out in a hushed whisper. "I can't dance."

Lucy's expression softened; she couldn't help it. The fact that this boy didn't know how to dance and was _embarrassed_ about it kind of made her heart squeeze. "Just move to the rhythm. Don't worry about how you look—just go with the flow." Lucy began to twist to the beat, moving her hips and swaying to the music. "See?"

Natsu's dark eyes watched as her body twirled to the groove. He blinked. "Go with the… _flow_?"

"Yeah! Give it a try."

Natsu awkwardly shuffled his body around, desperately trying to ' _go with the flow_ '. His joints were stiff and unbendable; his body was tense and uncomfortable. His face curled up into a look of confusion and horror as he tried to move his body around to the music.

Gajeel danced by, Levy by his side. "What's wrong with Natsu?" He asked, frowning at the shorter boy.

Natsu made a face, still awkwardly moving his body.

Lucy frowned. "What do you mean?"

Gajeel narrowed his eyes. "That's _dancing?_ Thought he was having a seizure."

Immediately, Natsu let out a groan of annoyance; his body froze up and he stopped dancing. He let out a sigh.

Gajeel and Levy danced away—Gajeel laughing, Levy apologizing profusely. They twirled away, passing by a bunch of other couples—Alzack and Bisca, Gildarts and Cana, Juvia and Macau.

"Aw, c'mon, Natsu!" Lucy cried, still dancing to the music. "Don't stop dancing! Laxus will kick us out!"

Lucy could tell by the boy's expression that he wasn't kidding around—he was _actually_ really down about his inability to dance. Maybe it was because he didn't like admitting defeat, or maybe it was because he didn't want Lucy to think he was a loser—either way, he was embarrassed by the whole thing.

"What's the point? I suck. We'll never win anyway." He began to walk to the edge of the crowd, away from the competition.

Lucy stepped forward and grabbed his wrist. "Come on—don't give up. I'll teach you, okay?"

Natsu met her gaze, clearly still hesitant. "I don't think—"

She smiled at him and pulled on his wrist, gently tugging him to her. She pulled him in close, squaring him up with her hips directly in front of her. "Okay, so you hear the beat in the song? We want to express that through our joints. So, our wrists—" She gently placed her hands on his wrists; at her touch, the tension seemed to disappear from him. "—our elbows and shoulders—" she traced her fingertips up his arm, stopping at his elbows and shoulders to prod them out of their stiff state, "And our hips." Finally, Lucy's hands traced their way down to his hips.

She swore this was just a dance lesson—not a lame excuse to trace her way over his body. Her cheeks grew hot at the contact.

Lucy began to move his hips with her hands, moving her hips along with them, swaying to the music. "Move your hips, sway them with the beat."

Natsu's hips—awkwardly, still—swayed to the music. Still a little wobbly, but much better than before.

"Now, your other joints—relax them, and let the music take over. It's like your riding a wave, okay? Let it roll through your limbs."

Natsu's face was fixed up as a frown; he bit his lip as he focused on the movement of his body.

Bit by bit, his swaying became more fluid, less choppy; his little frown began to twist into a carefree smile.

"See?" Lucy said, stepped back and taking her hands off of him. "Dancing is easy."

Before her hands got too far away, Natsu's fingers reached out and snatched her wrist; he put her hands around his shoulders and snaked his own hand around her waist. Lucy blinked, caught off guard as he tugged her in, their bodies pressed together as they swayed to the music.

Lucy's face got even hotter; Natsu smirked at her.

"What's this for?" Lucy asked, voice shaky.

His big hands landed on the small of her back, keeping her close to him. "Easier dancing with you—I don't feel as stupid."

"Alright, contestants!" Mira cried from the stage. "The judges have descended from their thrones! Be careful and dance your heart out!"

The chatter from the crowd intensified, although the conversations were barely audible over the loud music. The judges each eliminated one couple, and then returned to the stage to watch from up above until they'd decided someone else should be removed.

Lucy was already beginning to sweat. Quick, upbeat dancing like this was hard—not to mention the heat forming in the small gap between Natsu and Lucy's bodies.

In that moment, her body pressed up against Natsu's, swaying to the music, everything seemed oddly vibrant. Bold, but in a different way. Everything was hot and fire and steamy—oranges were more flame-like than before; yellows were hazier, like a bright light dimmed.

Lucy met Natsu's eyes. The way his eyes were half-lidded, the way he was watching her as they danced—it made her heart pound against her ribs, getting louder and heavier with every thump.

And their faces were close. So close. She could feel his breath coming out of his lips. She could practically taste him. Everything was fire and heat and delicious…

But then the music stopped and Mira's voice was cutting in, breaking through the weird tension that had arose between the two. Lucy let out a breath that she hadn't realized she'd been holding, taking a step back, caught off guard by the sudden change of pace.

"Now, let's slow it down, shall we?" Mira cried out, pressing a button on the boombox.

Now, a soft, gentle tune filled the field. A sweet, gentle slow dance—the complete opposite of what they'd just been doing.

Lucy had to take a moment to gather herself, calm her heart rate. This was _Natsu_ , after all—she couldn't get all hot and heavy because she'd danced with him. He was her best friend. She needed to think of him in a friendly way—that's it.

But the slow music continued, and the next thing Lucy knew, Natsu was offering out his hand.

Lucy frowned at the boy. "What?"

He cocked his head to the side. "May I have this dance?"

Internally, she was screaming. Her heart had officially melted into a complete and utter puddle and was now residing in her toes. He had this stupidly cute look on his face and he was _asking her to dance_ , and how the hell was she supposed to only think friendly things about him when he looked like this?

Although she was dying on the inside, Lucy kept her composure on the outside. She smiled at his question, gave him a little curtsy and put her hand in his palm. "Why, of course you may."

Natsu grinned back at her, then paused. His voice was a whisper. "Luce, I don't know how to slow dance."

"Oh. Right. Well, I put my hands on your shoulders, and you put your hands on my waist." She placed her hands on him, careful to keep him at an arms length away. She had to keep up _some_ restraint—even if she couldn't deny him mentally, she could hold these feelings back physically.

Natsu pouted at the way they were dancing. He didn't like being this far away from her—it felt like he was dancing with a grandmother or something. Grumbling under his breath, he decided to change the dance—he dropped his hands from Lucy's upper waist to her lower waist and stepped in quickly, forcing Lucy's arms to wrap around his neck.

Now _that_ was better. Dancing with Lucy only seemed to make sense if their bodies were pressed up against each other.

Lucy would've stepped back, chastised the boy and returned to the normal dancing stance—but his eyes were soft and his smile was so genuine and sweet and adorable that she didn't really have the heart.

For the first time, dancing wasn't lonely. She had a partner—a wonderful, sweet partner—who was dancing along with her. He was awful at it and she had to show him the steps and he stepped on her toes every so often, but she'd never loved dancing more.

Lucy didn't feel lonely. There wasn't an ounce of loneliness left in her body, not with Natsu around.

And so, the two of them danced the night way. They liked this dance more—the slow dance—and they kept moving that way even when the music changed to a more upbeat tune. They didn't really care. It was like they were in their own little world, one where it was just the two of them, one where they were dancing simply because they wanted to.

The crowd around them dwindled without them realizing. Natsu and Lucy didn't even notice; they were far too wrapped up in each other. They would dance and chat and laugh, snorting when they stumbled and giggling when they stepped on each other's toes. And it was perfect.

This would surely be the best day of Lucy's life.

And she would've danced all night with Natsu, but they were being called on stage and everyone was clapping and Mira was talking to them. Lucy didn't really get it at first—what was going on?—but it eventually struck her that they had won the competition without ever realizing it.

Mira's speech was a blur—she mentioned something about intense passion and a beautiful bond—but Lucy couldn't really pay attention. Her heart was beating far too fast, the blood pumping through her veins at light speed.

Lucy's cheeks were permanently hot. She wondered how dark of a grey they were. Could everyone else see?

The speech was over and they were given their prize—a mixed tape of Gajeel's singing, _great_ —but all Lucy could think about was how much she wanted to keep dancing with Natsu. But no music was playing and no one was dancing anymore and Mira was handing out snacks, so Lucy went and settled down on a picnic blanket beside her friends.

She was going to talk to Natsu, ask him to dance with her again once they'd had a good rest—because he had to know how much she'd loved it. She had to tell him how much it had meant to her. He had to know that dancing with him had been the first time she'd danced without feeling lonely.

But before she could get to him—he was talking with Gajeel a blanket or two away—someone had whisked her away, tugging on her and pulling her into the tree line fiercely.

Lucy stumbled, nearly tripping as this mystery person hauled her away from the fun and games. Breaking out of her trance, Lucy glanced over at whoever had pulled her away, giving them a funny look.

"Gray?" Lucy frowned, a little confused. Why the hell was Gray so hurriedly pulling Lucy away from the group? Why did he have such a frustrated look on his face?

The boy didn't speak until they were well hidden within the trees. He spun on his heel, looking at Lucy with a wild ferociousness in his gaze. "I've got something important to ask you."

Lucy blinked. "Okay, what is it?"

"You can't repeat this to anyone."

"I won't, Gray."

"Swear on your grave?"

Lucy sighed. "Yes."

" _Say it_."

She rolled her eyes. "I swear on my grave I won't repeat this to anyone! Happy now?"

He crossed his arms. "Yes."

"You're scaring me. Did you kill someone or something?"

Gray didn't seem impressed. "No, I didn't commit murder."

"Then _what?_ "

"I need to ask you about…color."

Lucy froze. Color? She tried to act calm, to hide her nervousness. Her voice was shakier than she'd intended. "Oh, what about it?"

His eyes were intense. "You can see it, right?"

Her eyes widened. How did he know? How could he possibly tell that she could see color? Adrenaline gushed through her veins, and she began to panic. "I—uh, well—"

Gray sighed, annoyed with her stuttering. "Listen—I don't _care_ if you can. I just need to ask you something, and you can only answer me if you can see colors."

Lucy continued to hesitate. "Well, I, um, _colors_ , and—uh—"

Gray's hands landed on her shoulders. "Lucy! Can you see them or not?"

Her eyes dropped to the ground. "It's complicated."

"What?" He asked, confused.

She turned it back to him. "Why do you want to know so badly?"

He bit his lip. "I've got a problem."

"What _kind_ of problem?"

"A _color_ problem."

Lucy frowned, searching her friends face. "Can you…can you see colors?"

Gray let out a groan, letting his head fall into his hands.

"I knew it!" Lucy cried. "I knew you lied when we interrogated you!"

Gray's head snapped up; he rolled his eyes. "I wasn't lying when you interrogated me, you idiot!" He let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping. "It's a recent thing."

"How recent?"

He peered up at her, eyes filled to the brim with confusion and torturous pain. "Maybe an hour ago? But it's weird, because it flickered, and then it left, and then—"

Lucy blinked. "Wait, wait, wait. So you…you found your soul mate?"

Gray turned, smashing his head against the tree.

"Jesus! Gray, stop!" Lucy cried, pulling him away from the tree. "Answer me! Did you find your soul mate?"

Gray's eyes were dark, and he gave the girl a nod.

" _Who?_ "

He let out a sigh, his head drooping a little as he mumbled out the truth.

It wasn't that he was upset by it—no, finding ones soul mate was anything but awful—but it did make things a bit more troubling. _Especially_ because he'd been ignoring said soul mate for the past several months.

"It's Juvia."


	16. Gray

" _What?"_ Lucy sputtered, blinking at the boy before her.

Gray grimaced. "I know."

"So, you're telling me that you're soulmate is _Juvia_ , the girl who you've practically blindly ignored for half a year?"

The boy let out a sigh, clearly just as troubled by the truth as Lucy was.

It wasn't like he had ever intended to hurt Juvia. Everyone in the guild seemed to think his lack of interest in the girl was evil and malicious, but he hadn't ever thought of it that way. His treatment of her...he had never done it intending to hurt her. Selfish, yes. Harsh? Perhaps. But he hadn't meant to be cruel.

He hadn't been interested, simple as that. And it wasn't about her looks or how nice she was - she was perfectly pleasant. It just wasn't right. They didn't click the way they were supposed to. She hadn't lit up his world with color.

Gray was fully aware that Juvia had been able to see colours ever since meeting him. It hadn't been hard to deduce that much from her behaviour. He had completed her, sent her world spiralling with color-and she hadn't done the same for him. It was sad. He hated seeing the girl so torn up about him. But what was he supposed to? Pretend to love her for the sake of being nice? And then what would happen if he found his true soul mate? Just leave Juvia behind? That would be even worse.

So he had been honest from the start. He'd expressed his lack of interest. He didn't string her along, didn't make her think her adoration and affection was reciprocated or appreciated. In his mind, that was the right thing to do - and he stood by that.

But now, things were different.

Now his entire world was fucking lit up and vivid and so incredibly colourful he thought he might drown in the beauty of it all. The sky was bright and beautiful and the grass was dark and full of color and nothing was the same. All because of a girl. The girl he had hurt so much, the girl he'd shut down so often, the girl he hadn't dared let himself get close to for her sake.

Lucy leaned in slightly. "What happened?"

He crossed his arms, leaning his back against a tree. "It started during beer pong."

The blonde snorted. "Romantic."

He rolled his eyes at her. "She was just acting so differently and she didn't give a shit about what I had to say and she wasn't doing it for me like she usually does and I just—" He paused for a second, realizing how quickly the words had been spilling from his lips. "I just looked at her differently. And it all flickered—colors were everywhere. But only for a second."

Lucys eyebrows tugged together. "Temporary technicolor vision?" Familiar, but not quite what she was going through. "Everything had color?"

"Yeah. Like a big flash and there it was. But then it was gone. After the match, it kept flickering on and off...like someone was turning on a light switch. I thought I was dying."

"Well, that explains why you weren't there to collect your second place prize."

"Mm."

"Then what?"

"Well I was freaking out. But for whatever reason, I couldn't stop thinking about Juvia. It was like...I kept replaying that moment in my head, when she beat me. Her smile...I couldn't stop seeing it." Gray sucked in a shaky breath. "Eventually I calmed down and came back, and I saw everyone dancing. And I saw her dancing with Macao, and..."

Lucy raised an eyebrow.

Grays hand balled up into a fist. "I was jealous."

She couldn't hold back a snort. "Jealous?" Lucy sputtered. "Of Macao?"

"It's stupid, I know. Totally irrational. But I couldn't stop it. And then it all made sense—it all ties together. I just...I figured it out. She's the one. I can't believe it took me so long to figure it out. How did I not see it before?" There was a second long pause, and when Gray spoke again, his voice was as soft as could be, almost inaudible. "The colors flickered back on, and they haven't gone away."

The way Gray spoke, the way his eyes clouded up when he talked about Juvia...well, Lucy couldn't help but let out a dreamy sigh. To be so utterly in love, to be overwhelmed with the feeling, to see the whole world in color...it was so romantic.

She wanted that feeling.

And before she could even formulate a thought, the world around her began to change. Something shifted, altered around her; color crept into view, erupting into her world like lava spewing from a volcano. The ground began to swirl, a dark shade spreading out below Lucy's feet. Grass, trees...color spread through, filling their edges in

Lucy knew this color. She'd read about it. Her mother had told her about this one.

Green.

But what was the meaning of this? Why was it changing now? She could feel something growing in the pit of her stomach, forming in her chest. It was the familiar burn of jealousy stabbing through her veins, cutting into her.

 _Jealousy?_ And now a new color, entering into her view?

Lucy frowned. Was Gray her soul mate? After all, he'd fallen for Juvia, and now Lucy felt _jealous_ …

"What am I gonna do?" Gray murmured softly, pressing his forehead against a tree. "This is a mess..."

Lucy blinked, still trying to make sense of her own feelings. She'd discovered green, the color of trees and grass and leaves. She was beginning to fill in patches of her otherwise grey world. She was still missing a few parts, but for the most part, it was filling up. And now, she felt...jealous.

But looking at Gray, watching him struggle with his newfound love, Lucy realized that it wasn't _him_ she was jealous over. No, it wasn't the boy's affections that had caused the stir in her heart—it was the simplicity of his love. Again, another person discovered love and was struck by colors full force. Of course, Gray had a little hiccup—a moment or two or colours flickering—but it was still relatively easy. One second grey, the next colourful. He knew exactly who his soul mate was, knew exactly the truth: that he was in love.

But Lucy still didn't have that. She had bits and pieces hitting her randomly. She had colors that lit up the sky and the flowers, but still patches of grey leaving her mystified. She had confusion and pain. Who was her soul mate? Why wasn't the answer obvious to her like it was to everyone else?

Lucy smiled at her friend, still confused by her unanswered questions but knowing that there was no use in stressing over it. "I'm so happy for you, Gray."

He let out a groan. "Don't be. It's not like this is a good thing. I've hurt her, Lucy. What if she never forgives me?"

Licy gaze softened. The love was plain on his face, clear as day. It made her heart squeeze. He was truly, genuinely, _wholeheartedly_ in love. "Well, you've got all the time in the world to make it up to her."

The agony in his eyes faltered and he gave his friend a determined nod. "Right!" His expression twisted a split second after, and he cocked his head to the side. "Was it like this for you? Did your colors flicker?"

Lucy shrugged. "No, mine didn't flicker—I mean, _what_?" She awkwardly tried to cover her mistake. "I um, I can't see color."

Gray shook his head. "I know you can, Lucy. You don't have to lie."

Her eyebrows pulled down as her face contorted into a frown. "How do you know?"

He laughed. "Only an idiot would believe your stumbling excuses. We asked you outright and you nearly blacked out trying to think of a cover. Gajeel might be dumb enough to believe you, but I'm not."

"You're oddly perceptive."

His hand clapped down on her shoulder; he gave her a friendly, trusting smile. "How's the colourful life going?"

Lucy bit her lip. "Not great, actually."

"Why not?"

Lucy sighed, figuring how was the time to be honest. Gray had just spilled his most intimate secret, so she figured her turn was up. Besides, she trusted him. He was a nice person and he hadn't failed to support her since her joining the guild. "It's confusing," She admitted. "I can't see them all. I gain the ability one color at a time."

He made a face. "What? That's weird."

"I know. It's very jarring. Out of the blue, these colors just come into focus. Randomly, with no warning. And I don't know why."

He tapped his chin, trying to make sense of her situation. "Have you asked Natsu?"

Lucy shook her head. "No, why would I?"

Gray stared at the blonde for a moment, a weird look in his eyes. His eyebrows shot upwards, the corners of his lips tugging down at the exact same moment. He looked a little confused. After a hesitant moment, he shook his head and shrugged, placing a blank mask over his features. "Oh. Well. You mean…he's not your soul mate?"

Lucy's eyes shot open wide, her jaw dropping. There was a split second of silence before Lucy began to babble and sputter, shocked by the absurdity of Gray's words. " _What?_ Natsu—my soulmate? No, no. No. _No_." Her eyes dropped to the grass; she began to fiddle with it, kicking some long blades with the edge of her foot. "Of course not. He's my best friend."

"And?"

Lucy glared back up at Gray. "And that would be _wrong_."

The boy shrugged. "I dunno, I think falling in love with your best friend would be cute."

Lucy's face was burning up. She felt like her head could explode at any second. "Well—it's not him. If it was him, it would've hit me square in the face. It would've hit me like everyone else—it would've been instantaneous." Her eyebrows pulled down a little and her face twisted into an unsure frown. "Right?" Lucy looked up at Gray, looking for assurance.

Gray hesitated, not sure what to say.

Lucy pressed on. "If Natsu was my soul mate, this would've been clear cut…black and white. Right?" Her voice was strained, a little too tense, but she didn't care. She was so sick of being helpless, with not knowing anything. She wanted answers— _now_.

Gray read her expression, heard the emotion seeping out through her voice, and he knew what it meant.

She wanted answers. She was sick of not seeing everything completely, sick of not being hit by love at full force like everyone else was. She wanted to know if it would ever happen for her, or if she was simply stuck in this middle ground, seeing color but lacking the mate.

Because if things were black and white, she would've gotten her answer already.

And honestly, if Lucy had asked Gray this two days ago, he would've been just as pessimistic as she was. He would've agreed with her. Because two days ago, that's what he thought was true—he thought soulmates were black and white. He thought love was clear cut, simple to understand. He'd thought ignoring Juvia was the best thing for her in the long run.

But here he was, utterly in love with her. Everything had changed. Experiencing something so profound, so life altering…it had changed his perspective.

"I don't think so, no. I don't think finding your soulmate is black and white, easy to understand. I think it's the opposite—it's confusing and it hurts and its complex, but that's the point. If finding your soulmate was easy, everyone would see color. It wouldn't be hard. Love wouldn't be so rare."

Lucy blinked, frowning. "What?"

"I don't think it's _you meet your soulmate_ and then _bam, you see color_. If that were true, I would've seen color the first time I met Juvia. We'd interacted for _months_ , and just now it's hit me that she's the one for me. Do you see what I'm saying? It's not about meeting them—it's about being ready for them."

Lucy stared at the ground, trying to make sense of it all. "Being ready?"

"For me, it was realizing that she was her own person. I had to see her living her own life, having fun, not caring about me. I've been selfish for too long, Lucy—I just had to wait to realize that I needed her just as much as she needed me."

Lucy huffed out a breath. "So…I need to be ready for my soul mate."

"Yeah. And the fact that you can see _some_ colors makes me think that you're partially there—you just need that last little push. You're almost there."

"So…you think my soul mate is out there? You think I'm not just broken, or something?"

"You're not broken, Lucy. You'll find them, whoever they are. You just need to be ready."

Lucy gave him a nod. He'd given her a lot to think about, that's for sure. She owed him. "Thank you, Gray. For everything."

He smiled. "Thank _you_."

"For what?"

"Not freaking out when I told you I found my soulmate."

Lucy snorted. "Yeah, yeah. Wait till Levy finds out. She'll freak—she thought for sure you were lying in your interrogation."

"I wasn't lying!"

"Save it for the judge, bucko."

Gray rolled his eyes, smiling at his friend. "Should we head back?"

Lucy gave him a nod. "Sure."

They made their way back to the main crowd—bingo was just about to start—and dove back into the festivities.

As they made the way through the crowds to the picnic blanket where Natsu and Gajeel sat, Lucy couldn't help but sneak a peek at Gray's face as they walked past Juvia's seat.

She was busy laughing and drinking lemonade, chatting with Wendy and Lisanna about something funny that had happened earlier; the sunlight made her hair look even more blue than usual.

The look that crossed Gray's face was so emotional, so personal that even Lucy (being the nosy person she was) had to look away, a flush of heat in her cheeks. Just seeing him look at Juvia had been so incredibly filled with love, so intimate.

Lucy took a seat on the picnic blanket, mind in a bit of a daze. Seeing love on someone's face like that, so plainly obvious and intense…it made her yearn for that. She wanted that kind of love. She wanted a love that lit up her entire world.

And she intended to have it. She'd have to work on herself—make herself _ready_ for her soulmate—so she could have it.

Natsu handed Lucy the bingo card he'd been saving for her. His dark eyes washed over her face, drinking in her dazed expression; he snorted, a smirk working its way onto his lips. "You alright, Luce?"

She looked at the boy, still utterly stumped by his oddly colored grey hair. But the way his grey hair contrasted against the vivid green surroundings, the green of the trees and the grass, only filled her with more hope and determination.

Lucy couldn't help but smile at the boy, at her best friend, happiness radiating out of her. "I'm perfect."

That answer seemed to please Natsu; he pressed his lips into a straight line as he tried to stop a grin from spreading over his features. He nodded, passing Lucy a stamp to use during bingo. "Here. Thought you'd like this one. Reminds me of you."

Lucy glanced down at the stamper. It was a smiley face one; now, whenever she had a number that was called out, she could stamp a little smiley face in the square. It was wonderful, and perfectly reflected her joyful attitude at the moment.

She smiled over at Natsu.

What had she ever done to deserve a friend like Natsu?


	17. Gamble

"It's rigged!" Gajeel cried, crossing his arms angrily. He glared up at the stage, anger clouding his features. "How in the _hell_ does Erza win every goddamn year? It's rigged! _Rigged!_ "

Levy was sitting beside the big buffoon, equally as mad. Her nose was scrunched up, her hands balled up into tiny fists, fury dripping out of every pore in her body. "Favoritism!" She howled, eyes narrowing as she watched Erza grab the first place prize. "I'll sue! I swear to god, Makarov!"

Lucy snorted as she watched her two friends shout out angrily. Of course, Makarov and Mira paid no attention to the two angry members of the crowd; the rest of the guild cheered Erza on as she accepted first place—and her prize.

It was funny, watching Levy and Gajeel spend time together. They were the oddest pair—a big, bumbling beast and a tiny, dainty girl. Looking at them, they wouldn't seem to go together, wouldn't seem to fit. But they did. Like Beauty and the Beast.

And honestly, that's how it had been, initially. He was rough and rude and annoying; she was sharp and cold in response. They'd hated each other.

But now…they were close. Friends. And their personalities were perfectly different, exactly opposite of each other. They were like two puzzle pieces that fit together snugly. They perfectly accented one another.

Levy was logical and calculated—but he made her think with her emotions, made her question logic.

Gajeel was harsh and rough around the edges—but she made him be more careful, made him more polite and kind.

Lucy couldn't help but smile to herself as she watched Levy let out a sigh, leaning into Gajeel's arm. It was all quite clear to the blonde—she already seemed to know what the pair didn't: that they were meant to be.

Maybe they could see color already. Maybe it hadn't happened yet. Hell, maybe it never would. It was everything that Gray had just discussed with her: love was complex, love wasn't black and white. Sometimes it was convoluted and didn't make sense. Sometimes it was easy, sometimes it wasn't.

Maybe it would be easy for Levy and Gajeel— _maybe not_.

But Lucy could already tell that they were falling in love.

There was a bump into her side as someone gently elbowed her. "Luce?"

Lucy turned her head, eyes landing on Natsu. Immediately, she felt her expression brighten. Something about that boy just radiated _sunshine_. "Yeah?" She whispered back, trying to stay quiet as Erza bellowed out an acceptance speech on stage. "Everything alright?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Just bored. Wanna get out of here?"

Lucy's lips turned up at the corners. "You mean you _don't_ want to listen to Erza's forty minute long speech?"

"Not really."

"Shocker." Lucy glanced around, looking for a way to sneak out without being seen. If Mira or Makarov saw them ducking out during such a pivotal moment, they'd be murdered. "Okay. But where will we go?"

Natsu shrugged. "I've got something I wanna show you."

Lucy's eyebrows shot up. "You want to show something to… _me_?" She desperately tried to conceal the fact that her heart rate had picked up. She blinked at the boy, the heat beginning to sneak up her throat towards her cheeks. "Okay."

His big hand reached down and grabbed hers, intertwining their fingers—he pulled her up from her seat and they quietly snuck away from the group, trying not to interfere with Erza's big moment. Natsu lead her through the group, weaving her between clusters of their friends sitting on the grass.

They passed the picnic blanket Gray was sitting on; he gave Lucy a knowing smile.

Lucy's eyes dropped, her gaze falling to Natsu's big hand holding hers. A wave of heat crashed through her body, making her cheeks blaze like they'd just been set on fire.

Was it normal for a _best friend_ to stir up a reaction like this?

Lucy closed her eyes for a quick second. _Of course not_. Friendship was trust and love and happiness—which she had with Natsu, yes—but it wasn't quick heartbeats and hot cheeks and having your tummy flop when he held your hand.

Lucy supposed it was time to come clean with herself, to be completely and brutally honest. It was time to let herself understand what was happening, time for her to acknowledge the elephant in the room.

She liked Natsu.

There. That was that. Everything she'd been desperately trying to hold back, everything she'd been trying to cram into the back of her mind was now wide out in the open. No more hiding it from herself. It was becoming too obvious, too big to hide.

Normally, when someone finally admits to themselves that they've got a crush, it's a happy feeling. It's a cheerful moment—acknowledgement of your heart becoming attached for someone. It's the start of an adventure.

But for Lucy…it wasn't.

Admitting that she liked Natsu to herself brought only waves of sadness and panic. After all, there _had_ been a purpose behind her hiding her feelings, stuffing them away: it was to protect her.

Lucy's colors being all wonky and coming in randomly made everything so much more difficult. She knew she had a soulmate, but she didn't know who. She could see colors, but not all of them. Nothing was guaranteed, nothing was perfect.

So, what if she decided to fall for Natsu? What if she fell in love and it turned out that _no_ , it _wasn't_ him that was her soulmate? What if she found her true soulmate and broke Natsu's heart? Or, just as terribly, what if he found _his_ soulmate and broke hers?

Not being able to rely on her technicolor vision made everything so much more sketchy, breakable. She couldn't just dive into love—not when there was a chance that she'd found her soulmate. It would only result in pain and heartbreak and loss.

Besides, if her worst nightmares came true, she might lose her friendship with Natsu. And that was just something she couldn't do.

Lucy stared up at the boy as he grinned back at her, her eyes a little more wet than they'd been a moment ago. For that split second, she allowed herself to feel everything that she needed to. She let herself revel in the moment, let herself stare at his lips and his eyes and his cute little nose. Lucy squeezed her hand, tightening her hold on him. She let herself love him for a single moment.

And then, she stuffed all away, as far back into her heart as she could.

She wouldn't allow herself to be hurt. She wouldn't allow herself to dive wholeheartedly into something that wasn't guaranteed. She couldn't risk this—her friendship, her heart—over something with such poor odds.

Lucy closed her eyes as Natsu led her, trying to stop the pain that flooded her veins. It hurt, but it was for the best…

Natsu's voice cut through Lucy's internal struggle. His words were soft. "Luce, are you okay?"

Her eyes snapped open, and she found the boy giving her a concerned look. His dark eyes were big and wide, filled with worry.

Her heart stuttered. "I—um, yeah, I'm fine."

Natsu's head cocked to the side, his glitchy hair all messy. "Pinky promise?" He stuck his little finger out.

Lucy swallowed. _Great_. How was she supposed to lie to him, right to his face? His eyes were all big and soft and his lips were all pouty and _god_ , he was just so cute, and—

She shook her head. _Get it together, Lucy_. "Just…thinking, is all."

"About what?" He murmured, continuing walking alongside Lucy, still on the journey to whatever it was he wanted to show her.

Lucy shrugged. "Stuff."

"Very descriptive."

She sighed. "Colors?" Her voice turned up at the end of her word, making it more of a question than a response.

Natsu blinked, shoving his hands in his pockets as the walked. "What about 'em?"

Lucy's eyes dropped to the ground; she kicked some dirt, sending it flying. "I don't know. What they mean."

He snorted. "Don't they mean you've found your soulmate?"

Her eyes shot back up to look at him. "You think?"

Natsu shrugged. "That's what that big ol' big in the library said."

"Oh," Lucy murmured, nodding. "Right. Well...I'm not so sure about that anymore."

"Why not?"

"Because—colors are just so…" She trailed off, shaking her head. "Everything in that book makes it seem so perfect, y'know? Meet soulmate, see color. But that's not always how it goes."

Natsu made a face. "It's not?"

"No! Every documented happening of technicolor vision makes it seem so simple, so perfect…but it's not. Even just talking to people in our guild, it's clear that it's not always perfect. I mean…look at Gray and Juvia. She loved him for so long—he was her soulmate. Only _today_ did he realize that she was his."

Natsu's eyebrows shot up. "Juvia is Gray's soulmate?"

Lucy nodded, continuing on her rant. "So that means Juvia went _months_ knowing full well that Gray was her true love, but that he didn't feel the same. What if he never felt the same? What if its possible to fall in love with someone, _know_ that they're your soulmate, and they never feel the same way?"

Natsu looked at the ground as he listened to Lucy ramble on angrily.

"Nothing confusing was ever documented in that book. What about temporary color vision? What about color vision flickering on and off, like a light switch? What about partial color vision, when you can only see a view colors at a time?" Lucy shook her head. "Nothing is simple. Nothing is easy. It's not black and white."

Natsu's head snapped up, and he looked at Lucy carefully. His head tipped to the right a little bit, and he frowned at her. "What's got you so mad about this?"

"It's just…not fair! How come it is so easy for some people and so difficult for others? Why did Juvia have to go through so much pain when Erza found her guy at age six?"

Natsu hesitated for a moment, then stopped walking. He turned his entire body to face Lucy. "I can see your point, but…it isn't easy for Erza, either."

Lucy frowned. "It isn't?"

"Why do you think you haven't been introduced to Jellal yet?"

Lucy frowned. Now that he mentioned it, it _was_ sort of weird that she hadn't met Jellal… "I…I don't know."

Natsu's voice was gravelly. "They're not together, Luce."

"They…aren't?"

"Erza saw colors the second she met Jellal. And he did, too. But…" Natsu trailed off, expression crumbling a little bit. "Things happened. Jellal was controlled, did some terrible stuff. And his technicolor vision…it went away."

Lucy gasped. "It went _away?_ How does that happen?"

Natsu's eyes were sad. "He decided he wasn't good enough for Erza. He said that he needed to make up for his mistakes." Natsu's expression twisted downward, and his eyes dropped to the ground. "He decided that they couldn't be together until he redeemed himself."

Lucy frowned, trying to make sense of it all.

The second Jellal had decided that he wasn't good enough for Erza, the moment that he'd decided that they weren't ready to be together…he'd lost his technicolor sight.

The words Gray had spoke to Lucy earlier that day came flying back, hitting her like a ton of bricks.

 _It's not about meeting them—it's about being ready for them_.

Jellal had decided that he wasn't ready, that he needed redemption—and suddenly, he'd lost his ability to see color.

So, Gray was right, then. His theory was right. It was about being ready for them. You had to be _ready_ for your soulmate.

"Erza…" Lucy mumbled, a little shocked by Gray's theory being true. "Is she okay?"

Natsu crossed his arms. "She was upset at first." His features gave away more than his words did; based on the dark look on his face, he'd seen Erza go through a pretty rough patch. "But…she's okay, now. She knows he'll come back to her once he's ready."

"That's…." Lucy trailed off, saddened by the thought of a person being left behind. "That's so unfair. Why does love have to be so cruel? It's supposed to be the thing that makes everyone happy—so why does it make people so miserable? Why can't love just be easy and simple, like it is in the book?"

Natsu watched the girl's face carefully; he watched her ball up her hands into angry fists. And he couldn't help but smirk at her furious little face—it was always so funny when she got mad. "I think love is simple, Luce." He stepped forward and grabbed one of her fists, using his own big hands to peel back her fingers and loosen the tension. Bit by bit, her turned her fist into her normal, relaxed hand.

Lucy made a face, watching as the boy worked on her hands, taking away her fists. As he did so, she could feel the tension leaving her entire body. His touch was gentle and warm, like a little flame flickering away, burning all of the anger inside of her. "You do?"

The boy shrugged. "Look at Gildarts." Once he finished unravelling her hand, he reached up and poked the angry wrinkle between her eyebrows; the girl laughed, her frown disappearing. "Once he found out Cana was his daughter, it was clear to him. Can't get any simpler than that."

Lucy blinked, a little surprised by that response. He was…right. Actually.

Natsu gave her a grin. "I think love is simple. It's the people that are complex. That's what messes it up."

She stared at the boy, in awe of his outstanding logic. Again, his words related to what Gray had told her earlier. Everything started to piece together in her mind. "It's about being ready for them," Lucy murmured, reflecting on Gray's words and applying it to what Natsu had just said. "Right?"

The boy nodded. "Right. Now, are you ready to see something awesome?"

Lucy, still in a bit of a fog—she couldn't believe she just got schooled by _Natsu_ of all people—gave the boy a little nod. "Sure."

"Close your eyes."

Lucy pouted. "Why?"

Natsu rolled his eyes. "Just do it, alright?"

"But _Natsu_ , why can't I just—"

"Fine, brat." He grumbled, clapping his big hands over her eyes. "I'll do it for you. Now, step forwards. Keep going…good, stop."

Lucy couldn't help but giggle at his annoyed tone.

Natsu leaned in, his lips close to Lucy's ear; his voice was hushed, deep. When he spoke, it ran chills up Lucy's spine. "Open your eyes."

Lucy smiled to herself and flickered her eyelids open.

Immediately, she let out a gasp of surprise and awe. They were on a hill—they'd been walking up it this entire time—overlooking the valley below. The valley was huge and filled with rolling fields; in the distance, Lucy could make out the field where the guild had gathered.

The sky was lit on fire as the sun began to set. The clouds and sky were set ablaze with beautiful oranges and yellows, turning into a more blue and green gradient as the sky evened out away from the horizon. It was so vibrant and bold, yet soft and mellow at the same time. It was every beautiful color Lucy had ever seen twisted all into one spectacular masterpiece.

It was the most beautiful thing Lucy had ever seen.

Natsu snorted at Lucy's reaction. "Pretty cool, huh?"

Lucy's eyes were wide. "It's…it's… _perfect_."

He seemed pleased. "Thought you'd like it."

The blonde spun, turning to look at the boy. "I love it, Natsu."

His cheeks flushed a little, a darker grey tone washing over his face. "Good."

She turned to look back at the sunset. Besides the random twists and streaks of grey—missing colors—it was absolutely flawless. Her entire body was set abuzz with shock; she couldn't feel her toes.

This was the kind of moment she'd been waiting for her entire life. That moment where you are so incredibly struck with color that you're entire world just sort of freezes, like time isn't real. This was what she'd dreamed of for so long—this was the kind of thing her mother told stories about.

"It's so pretty," Lucy murmured softly, in a lovely sort of daze. "I love the oranges."

Natsu smiled out at the sunset, his own eyes with a sort of haze over them. "Yeah," He hummed, that stupid grin practically glued to his face. "They're my favorite."

They both sighed, completely content.

And if it were any other moment, Lucy would've been aware enough to understand what Natsu had just said. She would've gone berserk and interrogated him and questioned him until he spilled the beans. But she was far too caught up in her lovey dovey haze, too clouded by the beauty of the sunset.

His words didn't register to her ears; it was just a gently, inaudible purr.

They sat down on the top of that hill and watched the sun go down together.

As the sun went down further and further, Lucy began to get cold; her teeth were chattering in five minutes.

"Cold?" Natsu said with a snort. "C'mon." He opened up his arms, inviting her in closer to him.

Lucy smiled and cuddled up to him; he put his arm around her shoulder and she nuzzled her head into the crook of his neck.

So much for giving up on loving him. Oh well—she'd fight the good fight another day. Today, with a sunset this beautiful…well, she couldn't. Her heart was too full, too perfectly happy. She couldn't stop herself from loving him, not now.

He wasn't a sure thing. He was a gamble. He was a risk. The odds were awful.

But _god_ , did Lucy ever want to go all in with him.


	18. Fear

"What's your favorite food?" Lucy asked, eyes flickering up to the boy sitting before her.

Natsu snorted. "Anything burnt."

"Ew," Lucy shot back, face twisting up in disgust. "Why?"

"I'm a fire dragon slayer. Did you think I'd like my food raw?"

With a sigh, she rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Spare me the sarcasm. It's your turn, now."

The duo were still sitting up on the top of the hill, now twisted so that they were cross-legged and facing each other. The sun had set at least fifteen minutes ago, and the festivities were beginning in the valley below; the sakura trees would light up at any moment. The pair intended to make their way down to the party, but there seemed to be a silent agreement that they would linger as long as possible up on this hilltop.

They seemed to prefer each other's company over their guildmates getting absolutely wasted.

Their intimate little hang out had quickly transitioned into a game of twenty questions—which had currently been going on for about thirty five questions so far. Lucy didn't mind; it was a fun way to get to know the boy she'd been crushing on so hard. Any stupid little details she could discover about him meant way more than any time spent at the guild's party.

Natsu tapped his chin, thinking of what to ask the girl. "Hm…what's your biggest fear?"

"Hey! No fair. My questions are all lame and yours are all deep."

"Ask better questions, then."

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Jerk."

Natsu's lips twisted up into a lopsided smirk. "Answer the question, dummy."

Lucy let out a huff. "My biggest fear? Yeesh. I don't know. Spiders?"

He raised his eyebrows, not believing her. "That's your _biggest_ fear? A _spider_? Try again."

Lucy let out a sound of annoyance. "Death?"

"Everyone's afraid of death."

"They should be!"

He shook his head. "Stupid answer. Try again. I want an answer that tells me something about you."

Lucy let out a sigh, making a face at him. She sat back, her palms pressing into the grass, thinking about what her greatest fear was. Death and spiders were out. But what else was she afraid of?

Leading a boring, plain life? Being sent back to the estate? Being forced to live under her father's rules, in her father's home until she was old enough to be forced into an arranged marriage for business purposes, only to then be forced to live under her new husband's rules?

Lucy swallowed. "Snakes?"

Natsu let out a groan, falling backwards and resting his back on the grass. His big hands came up and covered his eyes. "Hopeless, Luce. Hopeless."

Her shoulders dropped. "What do you want me to say?"

Natsu pulled himself back up, meeting her eyes. "I want you to be honest."

Lucy crossed her arms. "To be fair, I am afraid of spiders, snakes and death."

Natsu gave her a look, and she could tell he wasn't impressed by her snark.

"Okay, okay," Lucy mumbled out, raising her hands defensively. "How about this—you tell me what you _think_ my greatest fear is, and then I'll tell you what it really is. Sound fair?"

His eyes narrowed as he read her face for a long second, and then he gave her a nod. "Fine. Making it interesting—I like that. But then you have to do the same for me."

"Fine," She sighed, waving him on. "Let's hear it. What's my greatest fear, Natsu?"

The boy crossed his arms and frowned at her; he leaned in, trying to read her eyes, read into her soul. He sat there, grumbling and glaring at her, for nearly five minutes before he came up with a response.

He lifted his eyebrows. "You sure you want to hear this?"

Lucy tilted her head. "Try me."

"Okay, Luce. You asked for it." He sucked in a dramatic breath, then let out a laugh. Natsu met her eyes, and let the goofiness from his expression drain away. When he spoke, his voice was deep, his tone serious. She could tell that it wasn't a prank, not a joke of any kind. "I think your afraid of letting people in."

Lucy blinked at the boy. "What makes you say that?"

He cocked his head to the side. "You don't like to talk about your home. You don't like to talk about anything before coming to Magnolia, actually." He paused. "When people ask you things, even when it's something simple and easy and unintrusive, you hesitate for a split second, as if you're debating whether or not to tell them."

The blonde's eyes narrowed at Natsu.

He continued. "If anyone asks something _semi-personal_ , like…if you had any siblings, or if you can see color, you panic."

"I do not." Lucy shot back.

Natsu's eyes were sharp, clear. "Yes you do. I can smell it. I can hear it. I can see the panic in your eyes." He paused. "You practically shut down when they asked you if you'd found your soulmate."

Lucy swallowed. Suddenly, her throat was incredibly thick and heavy.

How much had Natsu been paying attention to her? How often had he noticed these behaviours? He'd picked up on things that Lucy hadn't even realized she'd been doing. He'd noticed things that she'd been so unaware of. He'd figured out her greatest fear without her even figuring it out herself.

"It's the same reason why you wouldn't tell me what you were afraid of to begin with—you don't like opening up to people."

Lucy sucked in a shaky breath, blinking at the boy before her. "I…well…I…" She trailed off, not even having the words to respond to his dissection.

Because he'd been absolutely right. There wasn't a single flaw in his report. He had absolutely nailed it, gotten it perfectly correct. He knew Lucy so well he could see into her heart, deep into her soul. He'd figured her out.

Lucy's eyes dropped to the ground.

Natsu watched the girl carefully. "Did I get it right?"

The blonde mage blinked, a little shaken up inside by how _spot on_ he'd been. After all, everything he'd said had been completely right. She _was_ afraid to let people in. So far, she'd made great friends with everyone but had yet to share anything about her past with them. Her mother's death, her father's manipulation, her dream to see a rainbow…secrets, all of it, simply because she was afraid.

Her fellow guildmembers had been so open, so willing to share. Erza and Juvia had told Lucy they had the ability to see colors the second she asked—so why couldn't she do the same? Why did her abilities have to be so closed up, so hidden? Why was she always afraid to let people in?

It was the same with Natsu. He was her best friend, her closest confidant, the boy she'd fallen for…and yet she kept fighting it, kept pushing him away. He was sweet and he was perfect and he was kind, and she still wasn't sure. She was pushing _herself_ out, closing _herself_ out of her heart, too.

It was incredible how thoroughly he'd cracked her. It was like he'd known her his entire life, like he'd _studied_ her. They hadn't known each other for long, but he'd figured her out and found her greatest fear easily.

Lucy gave the boy a nod. "You got it."

He grinned. "Knew it."

"How?" She questioned, peering up at him. "How'd you know?"

Natsu shrugged. "You're my best friend."

It was like a little flame, a little ball of heat, awoke inside her heart. That one little sentence…it made her so happy. She'd known he was her best friend since the day they met—but to hear it spoken back to her? It sent her over the moon.

Lucy grinned back at him.

To have someone who knew your heart…it was a very intimate feeling.

"Your turn," Natsu said, nodding at her. "Let's hear it. What's my biggest fear?"

Lucy smiled to herself. "This one is easy."

"Oh, really?" He questioned. "Cocky bastard. I'll tell you if you're right."

She shook her head, then met his eyes. "You're afraid of change."

Natsu scoffed. "What?"

"Change. It freaks you out. You don't like new things. You don't like the old things going away. You like the status quo."

"And what, exactly, makes you say that?"

Lucy raised her eyebrows. "Mira changed _one thing_ on the menu last week and you nearly set the entire guild hall on fire."

Natsu's cheeks were a shade darker, now.

"And I think that fear is sort of what motivates you to work so hard. If anyone got hurt, if anyone died…you'd be lost. So you got strong and you stay strong so you can stop that from happening. You can handle the little changes—poorly, but you can—but you couldn't handle a big change. That would be the end of it."

He was glaring down at the grass, now, ripping out shreds of it.

Lucy smiled. Looks like she knew him just as much as he knew her. "Am I right?"

"'Course not. That's stupid."

" _Natsu_."

He made a face and looked up at her. "Yeah, yeah—you got me, okay?" He pouted. "I don't like new things."

Lucy cocked her head to the side. "I'm new," She reminded him. "You don't seem to mind me very much."

"That's different," He sputtered, shaking his head. "You're different."

"How so?"

Natsu went back to fiddling with the grass. "You just are."

There was a moment of silence lingering among them, but it was peaceful and warm. It was a mutual understanding that they had something special between them, a bond that no one else seemed to have. They were special to each other, and that was that.

"So, how come you're so afraid of change?" Lucy asked, leaning back.

"Hm?"

She shrugged. "Something had to cause it."

Natsu swallowed; she could see his adam's apple bob. He hesitated for a moment, but proceeded. After all, Lucy was his best friend. Out of anyone, this is something he would tell her. "I kinda was abandoned as a kid."

Lucy's eyes went wide. " _What?_ "

"Relax, relax. It's not as bad as it sounds."

"How in _hell_ is being abandoned _not as bad as it sounds_?"

Natsu sighed. "I wasn't abandoned on purpose."

Lucy frowned, confused. "Eh?"

"My dad—Igneel—he went missing. One second he was there, the next he wasn't. Next thing I know, I'm just wandering around. I was alone for years." He shrugged, trying to make his painful past seem nonchalant. "Until I found Fairytail. Makarov asked me to join. That's it."

Lucy's heart squeezed. Just judging by the pain on his face, she knew talking about it hurt him. To be so young and to be left all alone… _of course_ he would hate any sort of change at all. He was terrified he would lose anything in an instant.

"I'm so sorry, Natsu," Lucy murmured, reaching out and grabbing his hand. "That's awful."

His eyes looked sad. "It's okay." He blinked. "What about you? What made you afraid of opening up to people?"

Lucy shook her head. "Family issues, I guess."

He snorted. "Let's hear 'em."

"Long story short, my mom passed away, and when she died…it's like my dad's heart died too. He just went cold. Focused completely on business, forgot I even existed. He controlled me, didn't let me live, took away everything that reminded him of my mother." Lucy paused. "He took away everything I loved. I guess…I just got to used to hiding things, keeping them locked in my head so he couldn't ruin them."

Natsu listened intently, then gave her a soft smile. "I'm sorry he did that to you."

"That's why I ran away from home—I finally escaped. I'm happier here, with you."

It felt weird to open up, to tell someone a bit about her past. It made her feel scared, but sort of…exhilarated.

Natsu's cheeks went dark grey, and he peered up at the sky to try and hide it. "I'm glad."

Down below, crowds of people began to gather in the centre of the park, close to where the sakura trees were located. The guild had made their way over there as well; their rowdiness was easy to locate.

"We'd better get down there," Natsu murmured, standing up and then offering a hand down to Lucy.

"Right." She took his offer and he hauled her up to a standing position.

The pair made their way down to the park, eager to join their guild and see the trees glow. Everyone cried out greetings to them when they came into view, anticipation for the trees at an all time high.

The trees began to twinkle, then sparkle, and then they burst out into light; every leaf and branch was exploding with radiance.

To Lucy's surprise, the trees were absolutely bursting with vivid, neon colors. They were somehow pastel but utterly bold and bright; every color she'd ever seen was exploding out into the sky, lighting up her world.

Lucy let out a laugh as they walked through the trees, the colorful blossoms falling from the heavens.

To her surprise, nearly every leaf was filled. There were more colors than she'd known possible. Suddenly, there weren't as many gaps of grey in her surroundings. Colors came flying in, hitting her square in the chest. Dark browns and purples flew into her vision, filling in the painting around her.

No. In fact, there was only one gap. One slice of grey in the world, one color that hadn't come to her.

Natsu's hair.


	19. Truth

"Cana, truth or dare."

The brunette let out a sigh, rolling her eyes. She paused to take a swig from her mug—alcohol of some sort, Lucy was sure—and then grumbled out, "Ah, fuck it, dare me."

Gajeel laughed, narrowing his eyes. "Hmm…I dare you to…punch Gildarts in the face."

The crowd burst into laughter, snickering at Gajeel's dare. It was a dangerous thing to do—sure, Cana was Gildarts' daughter, but he was still the strongest member of the guild. Would she really be so daring to punch her own father in the face?

Cana chugged the rest of her drink and then gave the circle of guildmembers a sneaky grin. "Easy."

After everyone had a nice, long viewing of the beautiful sakura trees, everyone sort of settled down into a relaxed chatter. The older members of the guild all hung around and shared stories while the younger members of the guild had circled around a campfire Natsu had built and begun to play games. This, of course, had lead into a rather ferocious game of _truth or dare_.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Someone sputtered.

Another voice chimed in. "You're insane, Cana!"

Gray, sitting to the left of Lucy, shook his head. "He's gonna kill you."

"Nah," Cana murmured, pulling herself from her chair. She glanced across the fire to where her father was planted, sitting and chatting with Makarov a ways across the field. "Watch this."

The girl pointedly walked her way around the fire and over to where the adults were all sitting. She offered a couple greetings to a few of her fellow guildmembers, and then stepped up to her father. She looked at him for a second as he continued to chat with Makarov, peered back over her shoulder and offered the group a beaming grin, then turned back to Gildarts. She wound up her fist, and without hesitation, threw her fist at Gildarts with all of her might.

Gildarts, still mid conversation with Makarov, flicked his own wrist up and caught Cana's hand before it struck him. He held her fist, paused in his conversation to give her an annoyed look, and then proceeded to continue his chat with the Master.

Cana sighed, dropped her hand, and returned to the campfire.

Everyone was shocked; people's jaws were dropped.

Droy shook his head. "You were really gonna punch your dad?"

"Wouldn't be the first time I tried," She murmured, letting out a sigh as she sat back down. "It just can't be done. He's too good."

Lucy couldn't help but snicker. Cana was a funny girl—she made a mental note to spend more time with her, get to know her even more than she'd already had.

"Alright, alright," Gajeel muttered, shaking his head at the girl. "I'll allow it, even though you _failed_ to do the dare. At least you tried. Your turn, then."

"Hmmmmm," Cana said, her eyes flickering from person to person around the campfire as she schemed. "Let's see…ah. Here we go. _Lucy_."

Lucy froze in her seat, attempting to swallow the very sudden lump in her throat. This was _basically_ her worst fear—this game was only trouble, and Cana instructing you was just about the worst it could get with this group.

Everyone else let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Lucy frowned, afraid. Hell, she hadn't even _wanted_ to play, but Natsu had insisted. She'd said no, said she didn't like it, said she wouldn't take part in it…but he'd gone all puppy-dog eyed and the rest was history. "Y-Yes, Cana?"

Cana grinned evilly. "Truth or dare?"

The blonde had begun to sweat. What the hell was she supposed to choose? Choose truth, and Cana would force her to reveal her deepest, darkest secrets. Choose dare, and she'd be forced to do whatever the brunette wished…which was probably something rather repulsive.

Lucy glanced to the boy on her right, Natsu, for any sort of aid.

Natsu shrugged. "You're fucked, Luce."

She let out a cry of agony. "Ah! Do I have to pick?"

"Don't be a wimp!" Gajeel cried out. After a quick second—and Levy smacking him on the arm, chastising him—he followed up with a gentle, "I mean, _good luck_!"

Lucy let out a heavy sigh, stressed beyond belief. "Truth?"

The crowd let out a chorus of _oohs_ and _aahs_ at the decision, everyone's gaze flashing to Cana, awaiting her question. Would it be personal? Would it be revealing? Would it force Lucy to spill her guts on something awful?

Cana sighed. "Of _course_ you'd pick truth. Well, that's alright. And since your new, Lucy, I won't be too hard on you. No deep dark secrets will be revealed. But…there is one thing I'd like to know. One important thing."

Bullets of sweat dripped down Lucy's temple. "Yes?"

"I'd like you to describe— _in detail_ —exactly how you feel about Mister Natsu Dragneel. Directly to his face. Without dropping eye contact." Cana grinned. "And I mean _exact detail_. Don't leave anything out."

The crowd then erupted into whoops and hollers, everyone turning excitedly to watch Lucy go through with the task. After all, everyone had picked up on the chemistry between the celestial mage and the fire dragon slayer—there was something special between them. Everyone was extremely aware that their relationship was… _something_ , but they weren't quite sure what it was. Seeing Lucy spill how she felt about the boy _directly to his face_ would basically answer that question.

Lucy felt her stomach drop, her limbs go heavy as if they were filled with lead. " _What?_ " She sputtered, anxiety flushing through her system as her mind raced. How in the hell was she supposed to do this? Honestly, her feelings about the boy were confusing enough…but to be forced to say them aloud, for all to hear? It was panic attack inducing.

Lucy glanced up, her eyes locking with the boys'. His expression was twisted up into a look of pure cockiness; his eyebrows were cocked and he had that stupid lopsided smirk on his lips and he gave her a wink, urging her to begin.

"Go on, Luce. Let's hear it."

Her eyes widened slightly as the panic began to eat at her. Her gaze traced around the circle of friends, watching their anticipated grins, noticing them lean in to hear better. They began to chant her name, forcing her to begin the task.

Lucy took a deep breath, trying to calm her heart rate. This wasn't so bad—she could do this. It would be easy. All she had to do was look at Natsu and very plainly tell him what she thought of him. Simple as that. It shouldn't be too hard. After all, he _was_ her best friend.

She raised her eyes to meet his—her heart stammering loudly upon seeing that cocky smirk yet again—and opened her mouth, beginning to speak once the crowd hushed.

"Natsu," Lucy murmured, her voice shakier than she'd wanted it to be. She winced, annoyed that her body was giving away hints as to how nervous this task made her. "Natsu, you…" She trailed off, her cheeks getting incredibly hot within an incredibly short period of time. "You are the first friend I have ever made, and you are the best friend I've ever made."

She swallowed, looking deep into his eyes, trying to focus solely on him and not the crowd of guild members watching. "You took me in when I had nowhere to go, and you gave me a family when I had no one to go to…and for that, I am forever grateful."

Slowly, Natsu's cocky expression began to crumble away, revealing something more serious beneath. His eyebrows fell from their confident stance, tugging down slightly as his face twisted downwards into a frown. The sarcasm that had been oozing from every pore quickly evaporated as he watched the girl speak.

Lucy blinked, struggling to keep constant eye contact with Natsu—especially when she was revealing such intimate information. "I think maybe meeting you was fate. I think the universe wanted us to find each other. Because you've given me everything I've ever needed, and you've done it with such kindness. You have made me the happiest that I've ever been, Natsu. You're my best friend in the entire world and I love you with my whole heart."

Honestly, the look on Natsu's face was difficult to read. His eyebrows were pulled down into a frown, and his eyes were focused as he watched her; his lips were tugging downwards at the corners. There was a strange softness to his entire expression, an aspect that didn't seem to fit. He looked confused, angry, and sad all at the same time.

Lucy had no idea what the look on his face meant, but she prayed to God that this awkwardly forced confession of how much she appreciated him wasn't weirding him out.

There was a weird vibe in the air, a weird blanket of warmth and intimacy and privacy between the two of them. They just looked at each other, watched each other, _stared_ at each other, neither of them daring to blink or look away. And for a split second, it was like it was just the two of them there, beside that campfire. It was as if the entire universe empty except for their two souls, sitting and staring at each other. It was like no else had ever existed, ever.

But someone in the crowd shifted their feet, let out a cough, and that little blanket of safety and warmth and comfort evaporated into thin air; suddenly the air was cold and chilled, and Lucy realized that they were absolutely surrounded by people, and that her intimate confession of friendship hadn't been as private as she'd wished.

Lucy blinked, then glanced down at her hands shyly. Blood pooled in her cheeks, heated up her neck; embarrassment lingered in her pores, flooded her veins. She was absolutely mortified. She'd basically just told the entire world how important this boy was to her, how he meant the most and how he was everything she'd ever dreamed of in a friend as a child. Hell, she'd said that right to his face.

He hadn't seemed…right. Something about his face indicated something was different. It wasn't that goofy little grin Lucy had come to know and love; no, this look was one of rigid and muted concern. It was almost as if…he hadn't seemed pleased. He'd frowned and he'd gone serious—something that she had yet to see happen with Natsu—and he'd fallen silent. Even now, now that the moment had gone, he was quiet and still, looking at the fire, his eyebrows still knitted together.

Lucy sucked in a breath, unsure how to read the situation. His expression…she didn't understand. Was he mad? Had she just ruined everything? Had she made everything weird? Had she ruined this perfect friendship that she'd always yearned for?

"Well," Cana huffed, her eyebrows rising up in surprise. "That was more than I'd expected. Great job, Lucy. Now you get to pick someone."

The blonde looked around the campfire at her friends. Everyone looked incredibly uncomfortable after hearing her rather affectionate words for Natsu. After all, it was something that in all honesty, should've been private and guarded but was forced to become public knowledge. Sure, they'd all wanted to know—everyone was nosey like that—but now that they'd heard how absolutely loving it had been, they almost wished they hadn't. Nearly everyone avoided eye contact with her, the grey in their cheeks a little more pronounced than usual.

Lucy wanted to fade away, right then and there. She picked someone quickly in hopes that everyone would forget her own embarrassing confession.

She didn't dare look to the boy on her right. How could she ever look him in the eye again, after something so embarrassing? She'd just spilled all of her private, confidential, embarrassingly intimate feelings for him so _outright_. That look on his face, the one she couldn't read…it shook her. She tilted her head so she couldn't see Natsu in her peripherals.

"Levy," Lucy had murmured weakly, her voice barely audible. "Truth or dare?"

Levy rolled her eyes. "Damn it, Lucy! I knew you'd pick me. Um, truth."

Lucy wracked her brain for something good to ask her friend. "Out of all of the guys in the guild, who do you think is the best looking?"

The crowd sputtered back into action, with people chanting Levy on and yelling out guesses as to who she would pick. Very quickly, the intimate moment between Natsu and Lucy was forgotten by the crowds; they threw themselves into the next drama quickly, enticed by it.

Lucy let out a silent sigh of relief, glad that the focus wasn't on her anymore.

Levy shot Lucy a cold glare, rolling her eyes at her friend. She opened her mouth to speak—Jet and Droy both seemed to lean in in anticipation—before she winced and mumbled out, "I'm gonna hate myself for this. Gajeel."

The crowd went silent for a split second before roaring into action. People laughed and cheered her on for her honesty; Jet and Droy both hung their heads, depressed that they weren't Levy's choice. Everyone was laughing, clapping as the truth came out.

Gajeel's eyebrows shot up, and he glanced down at the girl sitting beside him. "Huh?"

Levy's cheeks were a dark grey. "You heard me."

A dumb little smirk worked its way onto his lips. "You think I'm the best looking guy in the guild?" He shifted awkwardly in his seat, his face getting hotter than he would've liked.

Levy didn't meet his eye. "You want me to repeat it? I already said it was you!"

He snorted. "Alright, alright." Gajeel's head turned back to the fire, a small smile shyly rising to the surface on his lips. "Thanks, shrimp. Don't think anyone's ever called me good looking before."

Levy let out a huff of air, then turned to look up at the boy. "Well, there's a first for everything."

Gajeel lifted his big hand and rested it on the top of Levy's head, his cheeks a deep, dark shade of grey—although he probably wouldn't admit to it. The contact was sweet, comfortable, like they'd been this intimate for forever.

Levy's smile was brighter than ever.

"It's your turn to ask someone now, Levy," Lucy reminded the blue haired girl.

"Oh, right!" Levy cried. She tapped her chin as she looked around the circle. "Hmmm, who to pick, who to pick…"

Everyone outwardly cringed, afraid that Levy might pick them. The short girl was absolutely ruthless, and everyone knew it.

"Gray!" The short girl said, turning and pointing to him. "Truth or dare?"

Gray sighed. "Dare, I guess."

Levy frowned as she thought. "Okay…I dare you to go pick a sakura cherry blossom, and give that blossom to the person in the guild that means the most to you. Got it?"

"Ooooooooooh!" The crowd whispered, hushed in excitement. It was an interesting choice in a dare—after all, no one had any real ideas about who Gray was closest to.

"I betcha its Lucy!" Someone cried.

"Why the hell would it be Lucy? Lucy is clearly closest with Natsu! That would be stupid!" Someone else shot back.

"Ladies, ladies," Cana murmured, shaking her head. "We all know Natsu is Gray's boyfriend. He's obviously gonna give the blossom to fire-boy."

Lucy heard Natsu respond, although she still refused to glance his way. "Hey!" He grumbled. "Let me just say—if I were to be gay, Gray would be my _last_ choice." Natsu's voice was a little shaky, as if the jokes he muttered were somewhat forced. He was still _off_ , forcing a mask to cover that expression that had cropped up during Lucy's confession.

The conversation in the crowd continued as Gray let out a sigh and made his way over to the nearest sakura tree to pick a blossom.

"Oh, yeah?" Cana questioned. "Then who would you pick to be your boyfriend?"

Natsu rolled his eyes. "Laxus, obviously. He's way more handsome than Gray."

Lucy snickered, face-palming as the rest of the crowd burst into laughter. As funny as the situation was, she still couldn't bear to turn her head and look at her best friend; she was still too embarrassed, still too timid after being so outright with her strong feelings about him. It had just been so… _awkward_. Besides, what if Natsu didn't feel the same way towards her? What if they were just pals, and that was that?

Lucy continued to look the other way. She didn't _mean_ to ignore her best friend…she just didn't have the confidence to meet his eyes right now. Not after something so intimate.

Gray trudged back to the group, beautiful prismatic blossom being rolled between his finger tips. Lucy could tell by the look on his face, by the way he flipped that blossom in his hand, that he was upset. He wasn't happy. He was angry, sad, anxious…he was everything.

The black haired boy stood beside the fire, in the middle of the circle, his eyes flickering at the people around him. He had to deliver this blossom to the person that meant the most to him. He had to give it to his favorite, to the one that meant the most.

If they'd asked yesterday, he would've had a different answer. But today…today he knew the truth.

Gray's eyes flashed over to Lucy's, his expression absolutely miserable. He was miserable because he knew what he had to do in that moment—and he knew what the reaction would be. Lucy shot him a questioning glance, asking if he'd be okay; Gray simply shook his head in response.

He knew what he had to do, and he knew what was going to happen.

It would not be good.

Everyone watched with baited breath as the black haired boy with the grim expression made his way around the campfire, headed to the far side, opposite where he'd been sitting. He hesitated for a moment, then proceeded and made his way over to a certain blue haired girl.

Gray held out his hand, the beautiful little blossom laid out perfectly in his palm, to Juvia.

Lucy, on the far side of the campfire, began to chew on her nails nervously. She watched as her friend held out his palm, putting himself completely on the line, giving up any ounce of pride that he may have had, all in the name of love.

Strangely, the only thing that Lucy seemed to be able to focus on in that moment was the lack of color. These past few hours, colors were the only things she'd been able to notice: blues, greens, purples, oranges. Everything had been so vivid and gorgeous for the entire evening. The sakura trees…they'd taken her breath away. But now, here at the campfire, knowing the pain that Gray was going through, what he was about to endure…even the oranges springing off from the flames were dull. It was like the earth was completely void of life in that moment.

Juvia's face was frozen with shock; she didn't seem to really understand what was going on. She frowned up at the boy, then down at the blossom, then back to Gray. "What?"

He swallowed. When he spoke, his voice was quiet. Despite his best efforts to hide it, it was plainly clear that he was enduring a lot of pain in that moment. How awful it must feel to know the girl you loved would be hurt upon finding out you love her back…"I…" He trailed off, unsure. "It's you. You're the most important."

Juvia's expression was blank for a long few moments. After a couple seconds, her eyes narrowed down at the blossom, and then she peered up at the boy.

Her eyes were cold.

"Is this…" The blue haired girl whispered, her tone icy and her words forced. She spoke as though she wanted to be quiet, for no one else to hear except the boy. "Is this…a prank?"

Gray made a face, shocked by her conclusion. "What? No!"

She ignored him. "It's not funny, Gray." Her voice was soft, weak with misery.

"Juvia," He began to plead, hand still outstretched with the blossom. "I'm not pranking you."

Her big eyes blinked up at him, the pain and hurt so clear in them. "Don't do this."

Juvia's mind was racing, trying to make sense of what was happening before her. Gray, offering her a beautiful blossom, one meant to symbolize that _she_ meant the most to him out of the entire guild…It just didn't make sense. He'd ignored her for months. He'd treated her carelessly, without a thought about her feelings. He didn't care. She didn't mean the most. This had to be a sick sort of joke, and she was the butt of it.

Gray's face was an echo of the girl's; a different sort of pain flushed through his expression. "I'm not…" He whispered, his dark eyes landing on hers. "It's not a joke…"

Juvia's lips tugged down at the corners; her eyes got wet. Her voice was a powerless, shaky whisper. "I don't believe you."

The boy blinked, scrambling for words— _any words_ —that might make the girl believe him. "Juvia, please—I saw the colors, every color lit up—because of you."

 _That_ seemed to shock the girl. Her expression twisted up into a mix of everything: confusion, sadness, surprise and _anger_. She didn't know how to feel. She didn't know whether to believe him. Her eyes fell to the ground; she stayed silent.

Gray's jaw locked; the muscles in his cheek strained. The look on Juvia's face was like a bullet to the chest. His eyes fell to the ground, his arm falling to his side simultaneously. The beautiful blossom was now locked in his fist. "I'm sorry." His words were sincere, and brimming with agony. "I'm sorry. I just…I thought you should know."

Juvia's eyes flashed up to his, a strange anger behind her gaze. Her voice still trembled when she spoke, and her tone was still soft, but there was a fire there, one that Lucy had never seen before. "Why today?" The blue haired water mage whispered fiercely. "Today of all days…when I'm finally having fun… _why today?_ "

Lucy flinched at the response, even from her seat across the circle. It wasn't particularly _harsh_ , but for Juvia, that was just about the harshest she could be. That small bit of fire in her voice…it was a symbol. Today was the day Juvia had decided to stick up for herself. Today was the day she'd decided to love herself completely, not Gray. Today had been _Juvia's_ day. There was something inside of Juvia that wasn't willing to let that be overtaken by Gray.

Lucy frowned, watching the situation play out in front of her, trying to make sense of it in her brain. How could this happen? Weren't soul mates supposed to be perfect for one another? Weren't they supposed to be your other half? Weren't you supposed to be happy together?

Juvia and Gray were soul mates, but their first conversation as soul mates was a brutal, painful argument, one that they might not possibly recover from…

Did soul mates not exist? Was there even a point to finding them, if it didn't guarantee success?

Lucy frowned, watching as Juvia and Gray spoke to each other, voices bitter and full of hurt. Sure, they were fighting and maybe it felt like this was the end of the world, like they'd never make it past this and they'd never recover, but…the love was there. Lucy could see it. In Gray's dark, ashamed expression, there was love. In Juvia's hurt, sad eyes…there was love.

Despite all of this, despite the fighting and the hurt and the pain…they were in love.

Maybe they didn't know it yet. Maybe they were just too hurt to see. But Lucy could see it, plain as day.

Things were tense and everyone in the circle was uncomfortable witnessing something so personal between two people, but there was an odd glimmer of hope in Lucy's chest. This was a rainstorm, but there was light on the horizon. They'd make it out. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow…but things would work out.

She believed in love. She had to.

Gray's head hung low, ashamed and regretful. He'd done awful things to this girl. He'd treated her without respect. He'd ignored her feelings for months. And now…now he had to face the consequences. This wasn't some movie where the girl would forgive him in an instant simply because he loved her back. This was reality. Juvia was a real person with real feelings. And right now…she hated him. He'd hurt her too deeply.

He'd have to deal with it. He respected her decision to hate him.

He loved her too much to do otherwise.

"I'm sorry," He mumbled, eyes on the ground. "I'm sorry I treated you so badly. I never wanted to hurt you…"

Juvia stood, shaking her head. "Well, you did, Gray. You hurt me." Her voice was still shaky and her eyes were still wet with tears, but she wasn't weak. She was standing up for herself. She refused to give in and accept the love of a boy who'd hurt her for so long.

His dark eyes flickered up to meet hers. "I love you." His fist tightened around the blossom.

Juvia met his gaze directly. She fought everything inside of her, fought every emotion that was screaming through her veins. _She couldn't give in_. She'd been in love with him selflessly for too long. She'd made the decision to love herself, to respect herself…and she couldn't give that up simply because he was _finally_ reciprocating.

So, she stuffed down every emotion bubbling through her pores. She balled her hands up into fists, trying her best to hold it together for the few seconds she needed to spit out a response. She wanted to burst into tears and she wanted to yell at him and she wanted to wrap her arms around him and hug him with everything she had. But instead, she forced out a few words.

"I don't care."

And with that, she stepped to the side, brushing against his shoulder as she walked away from the campfire.

It was an eerie callback to every time Juvia had done something for Gray. Baked him cookies, picked him flowers, did jobs for him, did anything he'd ever asked, and he hadn't cared. She'd yearned for him for so long, and he hadn't cared. She'd watched out for him, took care of him, _loved him_ , and he hadn't cared. Now, it was her turn.

The crowd was silent, watching the girl walk away, her shoulders beginning to shake once she thought she was out of view. Soft, gentle sounds of sobbing echoed through the air, fading as she got further and further away. She made her way to the path that lead back to town, not looking back once she slipped from view.

Now, everyone turned their attention to Gray, whispering amongst themselves worryingly when it became extremely clear that he was on the verge of breaking down. Levy and Gajeel gave each other a nod, standing and jogging off in search of Juvia.

Natsu stood, his face contorted into an extremely concerned frown. After all, Gray _was_ one of his closest buddies. They fought a lot and were always bickering, but Gray was his first friend when he'd come to the guild. They weren't always the closest emotionally, but Natsu always intended to be there for him when he needed it.

The boy turned and looked down at Lucy, offering her a hand up. "Let's go get him."

Lucy nodded, any fears of speaking or looking at Natsu now in the back of her mind. Concern for Gray seemed to take priority over any drama Lucy had been concerned about—now, she had to focus on making sure her friend was okay.

Lucy and Natsu jogged across the circle—their fellow guild mates were beginning to stand up and chatter, with a couple of them making their way to Gray themselves—and made it to Gray quickly.

The black haired boy's face was grim, dark. He was staring numbly at the ground, his dark hair falling in front of his eyes. Tears streamed down his cheeks silently.

Lucy's heart broke at the sight of him. "Gray?"

No response.

Natsu tried, now. "Gray—hey, buddy—c'mon. Talk to us."

Again, nothing.

The crowd began to chatter more, and a low rumble came from the sound of their guild mates; Lucy quietly signalled for everyone to leave, to give Gray some space. Within a minute, the entire guild had dissipated, heading off back to the sakura trees or the buffet tables, leaving the trio completely alone.

Lucy's eyes were wide with concern as she turned back to the two boys. "Gray, please…let us know if your okay."

Gray's big hands came up and he wiped at his eyes, rubbing at them with his sleeve. His eyes were red and bloodshot; his lips turned downward sadly. He looked like a mess. "I'm fine," He croaked out, voice cracking.

Natsu's voice was soft. "Don't lie."

"Yeah," Lucy added in gently. "You don't have to be tough. Be honest with us."

Gray kept rubbing at his eyes. "Honestly?" He cracked out, glancing up at his two friends, his eyes so dark it made shivers run up Lucy's spine. "It feels like I'm dying a little bit."

Lucy rubbed his shoulder. "It's gonna be okay. She just needs some time…"

"She'll forgive you," Natsu said with a nod. "I know she will."

"Why would she?" Gray muttered. "She rejected me _once_ and it actually feels like I'm about die. I rejected her for _months_ …" He sucked in a shaky breath, his eyes getting wet again. "I don't know how she handled it. Having your soul mate reject you for that long…." His eyes flickered up to meet Natsu's, and the tears began to stream down his cheek. "I've treated her so badly, Natsu."

Natsu's eyes were dark. The dim orange light from the campfire elongated the shadows on his face, reflecting the gloomy, cloudy feelings in his heart. It took him a couple moments to think up a response.

He looked at Lucy. She flashed Natsu a soft little smile, sadness thick behind the mask. That little smile…it seemed to help him. It pushed him forward, helped him find the right words.

Natsu turned to Gray. "I know, man. But it'll get better. If it's love…" He trailed off for a split second. "You can't give up."

Gray let his head drop, his shoulders beginning to shake as he blubbered out a few sobs. He swayed a bit; Natsu dashed forward and caught him, holding the black haired boy up as he broke down into tears.

Natsu's expression was dark. To see someone so hurt by the pain of love…it hurt him, too.

Gray's hand's went limp as he cried, and the beautiful little blossom he'd picked fluttered from his grasp; it slowly landed on the ground, it's wonderful colors reflecting on the dirt. Bit by bit, as the moments passed by, the colors from the blossom began to dim—it must've taken a few minutes for the separation from the tree to affect it. After another minute, the blossom was dark, any hint of the gorgeous colors beaming from it now gone.

Natsu turned to Lucy as Gray cried. "Let's take him to my place."

"Right," Lucy said with a nod. "Sounds good."

It took them a while to convince Gray to let them take him back to Natsu's house, but eventually they won him over. He was miserable and exhausted, but the idea of curling up in a soft bed seemed like the right thing to do. They got him walking and headed on the path towards the house.

Lucy couldn't help but glance back as they headed out on the trail that led to Natsu's house. They were far away, but Lucy could still catch a glimpse of that tiny little blossom, dead and colorless on the dirt.

A once beautiful symbol of love, now a lifeless petal on the ground.

The image haunted her.

But before her thoughts could run rampant, before she could let the fear of whether love actually existed or not take over her brain, Lucy felt something sweep down gently and grab her hand.

Lucy blinked up, surprised to see Natsu's face directly in front of hers. He still had that weird little frown on his face, that expression that was _wrong_ on him, one that was confusion and sadness and anger all at once—but he looked at her and he held her hand and he squeezed it gently.

Something was wrong—Lucy wasn't sure what—but he was still there, reassuring her.

"It's gonna be okay." Natsu whispered softly, giving the girl a nod, before returning to help Gray stumble down the little road.

Things were bad. Really bad. Two of her friends were in emotional turmoil, overwhelmed by feelings of hurt and regret. It would've been easy to slip into fear and pessimism. It would've been easy to give up hope.

But Natsu had kept her head above the water. He said it would be okay, and so it would be.

He was her best friend. She believed him. Always.

* * *

 _ **A/N:** **So this straight up took months to come out. I am SO sorry for the delay in the chapter. Work was crazy and life got in the way and, well, not gonna lie, the ending of the fairy tail manga really screwed me up :( I was SO sad, lol. WHAT DID YOU GUYS THINK OF THE LAST CHAPTER OF THE MANGA. I HAD A LOT OF FEELINGS ABOUT IT IF YOU WANNA TALK TO SOMEONE ABOUT IT FEEL FREE TO MESSAGE ME GUYS.**_

 _ **Anywayyyyyys, this chapter is finally out. I know half of you are gonna yell at me for being out of character with Juvia but GUYS, I had to stick up for best girl Juvia and I couldn't stand seeing her get pooped on anymore. Also, very abrupt ending but I was a little stumped and frustrated and I just had to get this out. SAD CHAPTER. IM SO SORRY. PLEASE FORGIVE.**_

 _ **Thanks for all the love! Please review, critique, etc! It really keeps me going. Promise the next chap won't take forever!**_


	20. Aftermath

"How is she?" Lucy asked, cringing once she heard the faint sound of sniffles coming from the bedroom before her.

Levy let out a sigh, stepping to the side, urging to Lucy to come in. "Better come see for yourself. It's not so good."

Lucy sucked in a breath, stepping into the Fairy Hills dorm room, expecting the worst.

The blonde had been up all night desperately trying to talk some sense into Gray. Natsu and Lucy had talked to him all night, having some pretty intense heart-to-hearts about soul mates and love and how everything would be alright with Juvia, he just couldn't give up hope. All of the pair's words were wasted on the heartbroken boy; he was thoroughly convinced that Juvia would hate him forever and that his life was essentially over.

The night had ended when Gray eventually passed out, his cheeks stained with tears and his face flushed from crying, on Natsu's couch. Natsu had hauled the black haired boy to the bed, allowing him _just this once_ to sleep there. Lucy got the couch, and Natsu, like the gentleman he was, took the floor.

They'd awoken this morning to Gray searching through the fridge for food butt naked. Natsu had clapped his big hands over Lucy's eyes, protecting her innocence, before chastising the other boy for being so vulgar. Gray, depressed as he was, simply groaned out something incoherent in response.

Natsu had lifted his hands off Lucy's eyes—careful to still block her view of Gray's butt—and suggested that she go check on Juvia while he and Happy took Gray for a decent meal. Lucy had insisted she come with them—Gray wasn't looking so good—but Natsu persisted, saying that having a guy's day might be just what he needed.

And so, Lucy had cleaned herself up and made her way over to Fairy Hills, a little afraid of what she was going to find.

Honestly, there was a deep-rooted fear in Lucy's chest that Juvia would be perfectly fine. Lucy had nightmares about walking into the dorm and seeing Juvia perfectly calm, totally okay. To see that, to realize that Juvia wasn't phased at all while Gray was having a breakdown…it would shatter Lucy's heart.

Luckily, Lucy's greatest fear didn't come true. In fact, it was quite the opposite.

Juvia was sobbing, her body stretched out on the couch, her head leaning on Gajeel's chest. Tears streamed down her cheeks, her nose and her eyes red and wet. Her hair was a mess—she hadn't showered yet, apparently—and it appeared she hadn't slept yet.

Gajeel was cringing down at the girl snotting all over his chest, slightly uncomfortable by her crying on him but far too polite to ever say anything.

Lucy let out a sad sigh at the sight. "Hi Gajeel," She murmured, offering him a wave. She took a few steps closer, kneeling beside the couch. "Hey, Juvia. How's it going?"

Juvia's bleary eyes slowly twisted their way to land on Lucy's face; her cries began to intensify.

Levy closed the dorm room door and made her way to the back of the couch; she rested her hands on Gajeel's shoulders, supporting him whilst he supported Juvia.

Lucy's expression crumpled into a sad frown. "Not doing good?"

Juvia sniffled, shaking her head.

Lucy reached out and patted her shoulder. "It'll be okay."

Juvia sat up, her red eyes wide on Lucy's face. "How's Gray doing?" Her words were practically unintelligible as she cried.

Levy shook her head. "Juvia, don't you worry about him. He's the last thing you need to be thinking about."

Juvia glanced at the fellow blue haired girl, but turned back to Lucy anyways. "Is he…is he fine?" The words came out as a scratchy whisper.

Lucy blinked. Well, apparently Juvia had had the same fear she'd had—the fear that the other person would be just fine, not upset at all, whilst the other was falling apart. Lucy peered up at Levy, then back to Juvia. Her expression softened. "He's a mess."

That seemed to surprise the water mage. "He _is?_ "

"He was up all night, falling apart. Trust me. Me and Natsu had to talk him through it."

This news eased Juvia slightly; her cries subsided into gentle sniffles.

"Have you eaten?" Lucy asked the girl.

"No." Juvia murmured back, wiping her nose with her sleeve. "Can't eat."

"You've gotta try," Lucy quipped back, head tipping to the side as she frowned in concern. "Just a little."

Juvia shook her head, swallowing. "I don't think I can."

Levy spoke, now. "I know you're sad, Juvia, but—"

"It's not just being sad," Juvia murmured gently, fiddling with a loose string on her shorts. "It's…different."

Lucy frowned, leaning back and sitting cross legged on the ground. She figured she'd be here for a while, so she might as well get comfortable. "Different? How so?"

Juvia shrugged, lips turning down at the corners, sniffling. "He's my soul mate. It's just…different. Everything feels worse. It's like…it hits you right in the heart." She paused, frowning down at the little string, trying to rip it out. "But I know I did this for a reason. And I know I'm standing up for myself, for the past few months. But…I love him. Right from the bottom of my heart."

"So, you still love him, then?" Lucy inquired. "You can still see colors?"

Juvia nodded, expression sullen. "Yes."

Lucy frowned, turning her gaze to the carpet as she thought.

So…Juvia still saw colors. Even after her fairly harsh rejection of Gray the night before, she still saw colors, still knew she loved him completely. She'd denied him, but she still loved him.

Lucy thought back to what Natsu had told her about Erza and Jellal. Jellal had decided he wasn't ready to love Erza, that he needed to make up for his past mistakes in life, and he'd promptly lost sight of color. He'd decided he wasn't ready, and his technicolor sight was wrong.

But in this case, Juvia still had her technicolor sight. What did this mean? What was the difference between the two cases?

Jellal had decided he wasn't ready to love or to be loved…but clearly, Juvia didn't feel that way. Her world was still lit up with vibrancy because of Gray. Did this mean…Juvia was still ready for love? Hurt, taking some time…but still ready.

She didn't hate Gray. She wasn't over it. Her love hadn't faded. She still loved him, still wanted him…even if she was taking a moment to stand up for herself.

Gajeel leaned over and patted Juvia's shoulder. "It's gonna be alright, Juvia. Don't worry. Everything will work out for the best."

"Yeah," Levy murmured softly. "You stood up for yourself. I'm really proud of you. It must've been hard."

"It was," Juvia replied, wiping some stray tears from her cheek. "But staying away is even harder. It's taking everything I've got not to run right back over there and tell him I love him."

Lucy watched her friend break down into tears once more, watched the way her shoulders shook as she sobbed into the sleeves of her shirt. And suddenly, it struck Lucy—the truth about love, the conclusion that this entire situation with Gray and Juvia had lead her to.

Love _stinks_.

Love hurt. Love wasn't fair or kind. Love was a cruel game that the universe played on everyone. _Sure_ , some people were lucky with their love—like Layla, or Gildarts—but for nearly everyone else, it was complete and utter bullshit.

Erza was left all alone and deserted because of her love. She'd been left all alone by the love of her life, left behind. She still managed to put a smile on her face, still managed to have hope that he'd return to her one day, even after all this _shit_ love had put her through.

Juvia had been absolutely tortured by love. First, she'd had to deal with the pain of falling for someone who hadn't loved her back. She'd dealt with that tragedy—how she did it was beyond Lucy—and then only continued on to be stabbed in the back, shocked to find out that nearly a year and a half after she'd fallen for him, he'd in fact fallen for her back. After months of being hurt and ignored, Juvia had gotten what she'd always wanted, which almost made it worse. After months of mistreatment, he loved her back. Love was cruel.

And, on a much smaller scale, Lucy had dealt with love's fickle games, too. She'd been confused for months simply because love only allowed her to gain one color at a time. She didn't know who her soul mate was, didn't know what she had to do to unlock the rest of the colors, didn't know what she was supposed to do to find her supposed one true love. She was confused, and bitter and angry…all because of love.

Love was evil. Love didn't do nice things. Love only caused hurt.

Lucy felt her hands ball up into little fists. She was so _sick_ of seeing her friends upset, crying over _love_. She was so mad of people feeling hurt because of _love_. She was so annoyed with being confused over _love_.

She could feel her faith in love, her deep-rooted blind trust in love begin to dissipate.

Levy peered sadly down at her crying friend. "Juvia, come with me—let's go make you something to eat, okay? Please, you've got to try and get something down, okay?"

Gajeel nodded, his eyebrows stitched together in worry. "Yeah—just do this for us, alright?"

Juvia let out a sigh, wiping her tears off of her cheeks. "Okay," She said with a nod. "I know, I should eat. I will."

The three began to make their way over to the kitchen, only pausing to turn back and look at Lucy still sitting on the ground, face curled up into a look of exasperated anger, her hands still in tight little fists.

"Coming, Lucy?" Levy questioned.

Lucy swallowed, her stomach tight and her throat sore from the late night. "Raincheck?" Lucy called, pulling herself up to a standing position. "I've just gotta get some air—I'm pretty exhausted."

Gajeel made a face. "You okay? You look…mad."

"Yeah," The blonde said with a wave, brushing his words off. Inside, she was absolutely raging; she wanted to scream out at the world, scream out at love and tell it to fuck off. She was so incredibly furious that so many people had been screwed by something that was supposed to make people happy. She wanted to kick and scream and burst into tears. She wanted everyone to be happy. _She_ wanted to be happy. She wanted everything to make sense. "Just gonna take a walk. I'll see you guys later, okay? Feel better, Juvia."

Her friends—thoroughly unconvinced—gave her a wave as she headed off.

It was raining out, a slow steady drizzle, just enough to soak Lucy as she wandered the streets of Magnolia. She set out at a brisk pace, not sure where she was headed—she just knew she had to go. Her frustration was getting the best of her.

Lucy briefly thought about seeking out Natsu. Surely the boy would be able to ease her stress, remind her that love wasn't all bad. He'd be able to blow away the black clouds that were currently blurring her vision—he tended to do that without even realizing. But Lucy began to recall that weird little mask that had worked its way onto his face lately, the strange frown that had been in his expression ever since she'd confessed how important he was to her.

Lucy turned the other direction, deciding to deal with her anger on her own, for the moment.

Lucy made her way through the streets, walking down to the pier and the beach; she made her way through the market district, looking at the little shops and their trinkets in the windows. After nearly an hour and a half of trudging through the rain, Lucy was sopping wet. She figured she'd better head home, better clean herself up before she headed back to Natsu's to check on the boys.

Lucy let out a sigh, turning up her street, headed towards her apartment. The streets were wet and shiny, the streetlights' glow reflecting off of the dark pavement. She dug into her pocket for her key, fiddling around with it before she turned up to her apartment building.

To her surprise, there was a figure standing outside of the apartment—a familiar one.

Lucy stopped in her tracks, frowning. The figure turned to face her, turned to look at her, and her jaw fell slack.

" _Dad?_ " She hissed, flecks of anger working their way into her words. "What are you _doing_ here?"

Jude pulled his hood back, revealing his face. He offered his daughter a stiff smile, and outstretched his hand towards her.

He spoke the words Lucy had been fearing ever since she'd left her childhood home.

"I'm here to bring you back to the estate, Lucy."


	21. Daddy Issues

Lucy blinked at the man before her, the familiar curves of his face bringing back a million old memories to the forefront of the mind that she honestly had wished she'd forgotten.

Old, happy memories played first. Memories of Lucy laughing with both of her parents, trudging through the gardens or giggling at something silly. But, as the happy memories of her father began to fade, the terrible ones began to edge their way into her conscious thought. Memories of forgotten birthdays, memories of begging for a moment of his time and being brutally shot down. So many awful memories of the man…

She searched his face, searched for something _kind_. She wanted to know that there was at least a _hint_ of that person he used to be. But the longer she looked at his face, the colder it seemed to get, and the more she came to regret even giving him a glance.

His eyes were detached, cold. His shoulders were stiff. His hand was outstretched to her, but not in an _offering_ sort of way—it was almost like she belonged to him, like she was a piece of property that he was here to reclaim.

Lucy didn't have time for this—not today. Not any day, really. She was already in a rather shitty mood, enraged by the lack of fairness in the way the universe operated, and she wasn't about to put up with any of the manipulation and guilt her father usually hit her with.

In fact, she wasn't really in the mood to even speak with him.

Lucy spun on her heel, doing a complete 180 degrees; she began to walk away, ending the conversation almost as quickly as it had begun. She'd really been yearning for a nice hot soak in her bathtub—but if it required her to deal with _him_ , she'd rather just skip it.

Her instincts told her to find Natsu immediately. She wasn't entirely sure why, but it just seemed like the right thing to do. She felt unsafe, and she knew Natsu would fix that.

The blonde began to head towards the road that would lead to her Natsu's house. She hoped that the boys would be home.

"Lucy, please! Wait!"

She stuffed her hands in her pockets and continued on, ignoring the familiar voice that beckoned to her. She'd walked away from the estate relatively easily, it wouldn't be hard to walk away from him in the same manner…

"Lucy," Jude called out, the pain apparent in the cracks of his voice. "Please…"

It was harder than she'd thought. This whole time she'd convinced herself that she was stronger than she really was. She'd always believed that, under whatever circumstance, when she encountered her father again, she'd be able to walk away as if he were a stranger. But now, listening to him call out for her, the echo of those happy memories lingering in the edges of her soul…walking away was the hardest thing she'd ever had to do.

The sad memories, the lonely nights at the estate…those memories stung, they burnt hatred into her heart. A part of her truly hated him. But despite those hurtful memories, beneath them, there were the happy ones. Quieter, hard to reach…but still there.

He was her father. Her dad. At one point, he'd been her favorite person in the world.

Each step felt like a knife in her heart.

Lucy's throat was heavy and thick with sadness, a million different emotions hitting her square in the chest: guilt for leaving her father alone at the estate, regret for never having said goodbye. Was that why he was here? Because he never got the chance to say goodbye?

She hesitated, freezing in place. It was like one half of her was screaming at her to run, to run away to Natsu and to leave the pain and the anger behind; the other half was screaming at her to stay, urging her to attempt to reconcile now rather than regret it further down the road. The battle played out silently in her mind for a long few minutes, the rain pouring down over her and soaking her even more than she already was.

One thing seemed to stick with her, one thing that she'd never been able to notice before…

His eyes were brown.

Her heart hurt. Yet again, love seemed to be getting the best of her…

Slowly, Lucy closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, before she turned around to meet her father's eyes.

She swallowed before calling out, voice a little shaky, "Would you like to come in for some tea?"

* * *

"This place is…" Jude trailed off, eyes tracing over the walls and décor in the apartment. "Rather small."

Lucy let out a little sigh, leaning against her writing desk, taking a sip from her cup of tea. Of _course_ the first words he manages to speak in the apartment were criticisms. It was just like him. Why had she expected something else? Why had she expected him to be sweet and kind and _different_? "Maybe, but I really love it."

She watched as her dad made his way around her apartment, looking closely at every aspect of it. Her heart was hammering in her chest, her stomach tight with nerves. Just being in his presence seemed to send her body through an anxiety shock.

It was strange, having him in her home. The man who'd forced her to take dance lessons, the man who refused to let her speak to the estate's staff, the man who's forgotten her birthday four years in a row…he was right there, right in front of her. This man that she'd thought was so evil…she'd now invited him into her home.

All because of love.

It was hard to admit that she still loved him. But he was her father, half of what made her exactly who she was today. He'd done awful things to her, treated her so terribly, but her heart _still_ couldn't bear to let her walk away from him.

Lucy frowned. Almost like Juvia. Treated awfully…but still in love.

Love was so cruel.

He turned to look at his daughter. "And you live here? Alone?"

Lucy nodded. "Yup, all by myself. My friends come visit often, but for the most part, I'm all by myself."

Jude's blonde eyebrows pulled down a little bit. "Other than the cleaning staff, you mean."

Lucy let out a breath through her nose. "I don't have a cleaning staff."

She'd forgotten how disconnected rich people were from the world. Her father was a completely capable, genius businessman—but the concept of cleaning your own home was still beyond him. Lucy took a moment to thank god she'd never turned out like that—years and years of sneaking conversations with the cleaning and care staff had taught her that they were _people_ , not objects, and that not everyone could afford the luxury of staff. If she'd ever behaved like this…Natsu would've thought she was an utter lunatic.

Her father seemed completely shocked. "None? At all? No chef, either?"

Lucy shook her head. "Just me."

"Yeesh," He muttered under his breath, shaking his head. "You clearly take after your mom."

She smiled into her tea cup. "You think?"

"I mean, _look_ at you. You're like a carbon copy of her." A smile touched his lips as he spoke, memories of his wife brightening his features. "And you're stubborn like her, too. She never wanted any help with anything."

Lucy smiled softly. Everyone had always said she looked just like her mother, but hearing it from her dad seemed to mean a little bit more.

A sweet silence lingered over them as they both thought about Layla, small smiles lifting their cheeks as they drank their hot tea.

"So," Lucy murmured after a long few moments of quiet, "What are you doing in Magnolia?"

Jude's cheerful expression faltered momentarily before twisting back down into the stiff frown that often clouded up his vision. It was a look Lucy had grown accustomed to—it was his business face. After Layla had passed away, Jude had begun to wear his business face more constantly, until he rarely smiled. "Ah—right." He took a long sip from his drink before turning his eyes back to his daughter. "I want you to come back with me to the estate."

Lucy seemed a little frozen in place. He'd already told her his intentions when she first encountered him, but the thought had slipped her mind after she'd taken such a big step and invited him into her apartment. Her face crumbled down into a look of confusion. "Why?" She asked, her voice soft.

Jude's voice had returned back to its cold state. "Well—because, Lucy. It's your home. It's where you belong."

She shook her head. "Dad…I don't think you understand. _This_ ," She gestured to the apartment they were standing in, "Is my home, now. I belong here, in the guild."

"Lucy," He replied, voice dropping as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "This life isn't sustainable. Living in this apartment, alone, being in a guild…it doesn't suit you. You're used to a higher standard of living. You'll get bored of this."

Lucy's eyebrows stitched together, annoyed. "I've been here for a few months and I've done perfectly fine."

"And how long will this last?"

She glared at him. "As long as I want it to! I'm happy here."

"This is childish, Lucy. Come back home where you belong, where our family belongs."

"Don't do that," Lucy spat, practically snarling the words at him. "Don't try and guilt me into going back there just because _generations_ have lived there. I don't care for traditions. I don't give a shit who lived there for how long."

Jude was getting angry now, too. His voice picked up, each word getting louder and louder until he was shouting back at his daughter. "Grow up, would you? You've got responsibilities at the estate! Deserting them and running away—it's so childish!"

Lucy's hands balled up into fists. " _Responsibilities?_ Like what? The _family business?_ "

Jude's face got more hot with every word he yelled back at her. "Yes! You're the lone child—once I'm gone, this _all_ goes to you. Generations of family members carried on this business, and I refuse to let you destroy that!" Frustration spilled out with every word.

"I don't _care_ about the business!" Lucy shrieked, the fury in her chest bubbling up. "I would rather _die_ than be forced to live in that stupid estate running that stupid business!"

"That's enough, Lucy!"

"Why can't you understand that I'm not like you?" Lucy sputtered, so angry that tears were forming in her eyes. Sobs threatened to spill over and choke out her words. "I want to explore and go on adventures! I don't want to be trapped!"

"The business is what you were meant for!" He snapped back, taking steps towards his daughter, his own hands shrinking down into fists of rage. "It's what you were born for!"

"Is that why you had me, then?" Lucy dared, tears filling up her eyes. "Just to continue on the business?"

Lucy closed her eyes, letting a few stray tears run down her cheeks. Why had she ever let him into her apartment, back into her life? Why had she treated him so kindly when she _knew_ that he hadn't changed? Why had she bothered to speak to him when she knew he was only trying to get her back to the estate?

 _Love_. The one thing that seemed to be causing every problem, as of late.

"That's not what I meant—you know that's not true."

Still, there was that nagging feeling in Lucy's chest—the feeling that she wasn't getting the entire truth. This little urging sensation bothered her, forced her to question her father further. "Tell me, then," Lucy began, her voice restrained. She wasn't yelling, now—no, now she was holding herself back, spitting the words at him through her teeth. "Why are you here now? I've been gone for months— _why come for me now?_ "

Jude's eyes widened at her question, then quickly flickered to the ground. His fists tightened. "No more questions, Lucy. You're coming home with me."

Lucy narrowed her eyes, heart beating quickly against her ribs. "Answer the question, dad."

"Enough!" He snapped, taking steps towards her. "That's enough!" He leaned forwards and grabbed her wrist roughly, prepared to yank her towards the door, forcing her back into life at the estate.

" _Answer the question!"_ Lucy screamed, every bit of anger and rage and white-hot fury that had accumulated over the years work its way into her response. Her blood was pumping quickly through her veins, her heartbeat audible in her ear; her eyes bore into his, awaiting a response. "Why do you want me to come home so badly? Why?"

" _Because!_ " Jude screeched back, his loud voice booming through the apartment and echoing off of the walls. "Because we're aligning with our biggest competitor and his only request was that you marry his son, and I have no other options, and it's the biggest deal I've gotten yet!"

Lucy stared at her father in shock, a look of horror and disgust breaking through the cracks and washing over her face. "You… _what?_ " Lucy whispered, words saturated with complete and utter heartbreak. "You're doing this because you promised me away to your competitor?"

"You don't understand," Jude replied quickly after seeing the pure brokenness of her expression. "This is important, Lucy. Millions of dollars rests on this deal, and—"

She recoiled, pulling her wrist away from his grip; he didn't fight it. "How dare you?" She whispered, voice weaker than it had ever been before.

"Lucy…" He said, his own voice lacking strength.

She could see it in his face, see it in his eyes…he knew this was wrong. He knew promising her away for a marriage with some random competitor's son was awful. He knew it would hurt her. When she pulled away, he didn't fight it. When she looked at him with loathing in her gaze, he hung his head.

He knew he was horrible…and yet, he'd still done it.

She hated him. He was cruel and evil and horrible. He was manipulative and selfish and controlling. He'd weaseled his way back into her life, back into her heart…only to hurt her further. He'd broken her heart too many times to count, but this time seemed worse than all the rest combined.

"You're awful," Lucy sputtered before breaking down into sobs. A sharp pain cut its way through her chest, slapping her directly in the heart; it radiated through her entire body. "You're the worst person I've ever met."

Jude watched her, his brown eyes sad. He knew. He knew what he'd done and he knew that her words were true.

Lucy shook her head at her father, tears streaming down her cheek. "I hate you."

Those words seem to pierce him to his very core. His brown eyes flickered up to her face, blinking as he watched tears stream down her face and drip off of her chin. Long moments passed and he just stared at her, shocked and hurt, before he murmured, "You look just like her."

She was practically a miniature Layla. And hearing a person who looks and sounds just like your beautiful wife tell you they hate you…it was enough to make him pause and think.

Lucy's wet eyes flashed up to him, narrowing, not understanding.

Jude blinked back a tear. "Layla. You look just like Layla." He paused. "Except…Layla had brown eyes, and yours are—" He cut himself off, glancing down.

"What?" Lucy spat, heart lurching at the mention of her mother. "My eyes are _what?_ "

He looked at her for a split second. He watched a stray tear slide down the side of her face, watched her small hands stay balled up into fists. He glanced around the little apartment, imagining his daughter living here, enjoying her life and cooking and cleaning. He imagined what her life would be like if he wasn't there, if he never came back and never made her cry ever again.

He bet she'd be happy.

"I'm going to go, Lucy." He murmured, voice strained, holding back. His eyes flickered up to hers. "I won't bother you again." He turned, making his way to the door.

"Wait— _what?_ " Lucy questioned, not understanding. "You're…leaving?"

Jude looked back one more time. It was shocking how much she looked like Layla, now. Even the short span of time after she'd run away…it had changed her. Matured her. Given her that same sparkle in her eye that Layla had always had. "I know you might not think it's true, but I love you, Lucy." He paused. "Someday, I hope you understand."

Lucy frowned. "What? I don't get it—"

Before she could finish her sentence, her father slipped out of the apartment, closing the door behind him. Lucy just stood there, blinking at the door. She didn't really understand what had just happened—he loved her? He hoped she understood one day?—but she wasn't about to go running out after him. He'd hurt her, after all. Unforgiveably.

So, she let him go. And then she cried. And continued to cry for hours.

Because, despite her utter hatred of love as of late, she'd let it get to her _again_. She'd let love in and it had only caused her pain. She'd let her love for her father influence her decisions…and it had broken her heart.

Lucy wished she'd never let her father in that day. She wished she'd listened to her instincts and run away, run back to Natsu, run back to safety.

But she'd trusted love instead—and it had only made her suffer.

* * *

 _ **A/N** **: Thanks so much for reading my story so far! It means the whole world to me that some of you faithfully read my stuff and comment/review! I THINK everyone is liking this story so far? It's so hard to tell because I can't tell if y'all are yelling at the story or yelling at me haha but it's fine, I love it. Sorry if you aren't loving it so far! If you've got any issues with it or have some fears about the direction it is going, please message me so I can give you a little bit of a hint as to the future of the story so you can tell if you'd like to continue with it or not!**_

 _ **This chapter may seem a bit random but it's not-promise. Everything I write in this story is relevant and important, so no worries. Poor little Lucy didn't have to deal with Jude's shit for no reason!**_

 _ **Thanks for reading! Comment/review/message me if u want to chat about the story! Thanks for all the support!**_


	22. Realizations

Natsu kept his eyes on the cobblestone walkway, trying to focus on each step ahead of him rather than the grim thoughts that seemed to plague his mind. He forced himself forward, not allowing the heaviness in his feet to slow him; he had a destination in mind, a place he needed to desperately be.

It was wet—it had been raining all day. Now, the heavy downpour had settled into a fine mist, soaking Natsu with every single inch he walked. The glow of the streetlights flickered and reflected on the puddles, lighting up the path the boy headed down.

Natsu had never felt so completely hopeless in his entire life.

Ever since Natsu was a child, the idea of love had never really meant much to him. He'd never thought much about it, really. In his mind, it was crystal clear: either you loved or you didn't. Natsu loved food and drinks and Igneel, and that was all he needed to know back then.

Love had never been something he'd cared about. He wasn't like the girls in the guild—he didn't daydream about it, didn't yearn for the day he saw flecks of color. But he wasn't actively trying to avoid it like Gray had been—he was somewhere in between, floating around, not concerned whatsoever about colors.

Love had seemed simple to him. It was happy and cute and warm. _True love_ hadn't even crossed his mind. The idea that true love could cause so much pain…well, Natsu wouldn't have believed it if he hadn't witnessed it.

But today, he _had_ witnessed it. For hours upon hours upon hours.

He had spent the entire day with Gray. He'd sat with the ice mage, watched him struggle to keep it together. Natsu watched his friend hurt, watched his friend practically fade away, all because of love.

Natsu had tried his best to make the situation better. He'd taken Gray out for breakfast, taken him to his favorite spots in the city, but nothing had worked. Gray would take a bite out of food, then stare blankly at the wall. He'd stare out at the amazing views Natsu was showing him, but grimace and ball up his hands into fists just to bear the pain. They'd gone everywhere—the docks, the beach, the clocktower, the pier. Natsu had even taken Gray to his super secret favorite spot to do his super secret favorite activity (throw rocks at the train as it passed by) but even _that_ hadn't taken the hurt out of Gray's eyes for a split second.

When the skies grew dark and it began to rain, Natsu lead Gray back to the house in the forest. It wasn't yet time for Gray to stay at his place—he wasn't quite in the headspace where he could be alone. Besides, being in the city, being close to where Juvia was…Natsu didn't think it was a good idea. Not when Gray was in this rough of shape.

So, they'd headed back, the pouring rain soaking them as they made their way down the forest paths. Natsu had looked over at his friend, his own chest beginning to ache once he realized that Gray was sobbing, both tears and raindrops streaking down his cheeks.

The rain must've reminded him of Juvia.

When they got back to the house, Gray flopped onto the couch and passed out, exhausted from all of the excursions Natsu forced him to take part in. Happy and Natsu chatted for a few moments, but it didn't take long for Natsu to head back out into the rain, turning back towards Magnolia.

It wasn't a long walk back to town, maybe ten minutes if he took his time, but every movement he made felt slower today. His legs were heavy like they'd been filled with quick-dry cement; his limbs were stiff, un-bending.

He couldn't get the image of Gray crying out of his damn brain. The image seemed to haunt the fire mage: his best friend, his _rival_ , always macho tough guy, never liked to be emotional Gray _crying_. It was almost hard to believe.

It hurt Natsu, to see his friend in such a state. It was like his organs had been set on fire. Seeing someone so hurt, so devastated by _love_ , something that had always been so simple in Natsu's mind…well, it was confusing. He wasn't sure what to think of love anymore. Everything was wrong and weird and nothing made sense.

So, naturally, he went to the one person that seemed to make everything make sense.

Lucy.

Natsu practically ran up the apartment building stairs, desperate to get to Lucy's apartment as fast as possible. His heart hurt and he had a headache and he had way too many thoughts, far too many for him to handle, and he knew Lucy could make it better. She might not be able to fix his problems, but she could distract him. She was good at that.

He'd barely had the chance to talk to her since all of this Gray/Juvia drama had occurred. Everything had been pretty wonderful up until the romantic meltdown of the century—the guild's activities, the sakura trees, the campfire…

The boy paused outside of the apartment door, hand freezing above the doorknob.

He remembered what she'd told him, at the campfire. Instantly, the smile that had worked its way onto his lips—the smile that had grown as he'd walked up to Lucy's apartment—slipped away, replaced by a quiet, rather dark, troubled expression.

Natsu turned the doorknob gently, with less ambition and excitement than he'd had just a moment ago, stepping into the familiar apartment. But, to his surprise, the entire place was dark—no lights were on. He frowned, forcing his senses to push out, to search for something.

Lucy's scent was here, recent and warm. He could hear her, too—a muffled sound coming from behind the closed bedroom door. Natsu hesitated for a quick second, still listening, until he realized that the muffled sound he'd caught was in fact a muffled sniffle.

The idea of Lucy crying caught the boy off guard; before he knew it, he was busting into the bedroom, any hesitation and worry overrun by the idea of his friend being upset.

The lights were off here, too, but the muffled sniffles had now escalated to muffled cries. Natsu reached over and searched for the light switch on the wall; after a few moments of struggling to find it, he muttered, "Ah, fuck it," and flicked out his right palm. Almost instantly, flames erupted from his flesh, lighting the entire room up.

Natsu's eyes darted around the room, searching for the source of the crying.

He found her on the floor beside the bed, blankets rolled up around her like a cocoon, covering her face. Instantly, his heart dropped in his chest. His eyebrows tugged downwards as a frown washed over his expression, eyes softening at the sight of the small body wrapped up in blankets.

Natsu sighed, stepping forward and sitting beside the blanketed figure on the ground, his right hand still illuminating the room with a soft glow. He nudged the girl with his elbow softly. "Hey, Luce."

The small figure sniffled, trying to hold back her quiet cries. After a long few seconds, she managed to squeak out, "Hi."

The boy leaned his head against the mattress behind him, turning to face the cocoon. "Why are you all covered up?"

Another long moments of silence while she attempted to silence her cries. "Oh," She murmured, trying not to sound like she was on the brink of bursting into tears, "Well, I just—" She cut herself off quickly, her voice very quickly deepening as though she were about to cry if she spoke even one more word. She sniffled some more, taking another long moment to complete her sentence. "I just felt like it."

He could tell when she was lying. "Luce." Natsu's big hand reached out and grabbed the side of the blanket covering her face; he tugged it off gently, revealing her face.

She'd been crying for a while. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips were a little swollen; her eyes were red and hazy, filled to the brim with tears threatening to spill over the edge and trickle down her cheek. Her big eyes peered up at him, filled with sadness and pain and hurt.

Natsu could feel his heart break into pieces at the sight of her.

"What happened?" He whispered, voice giving out on him. It was like all of his strength was tapped out of him, sapped from seeing her like this. It hurt knowing that she wasn't okay.

Lucy's eyes dropped to her blanket cocoon, the corners of her lips tugging downwards. "It was my dad."

Natsu watched her carefully. "Your dad?"

Lucy pressed her lips together hard in an attempt to stop a sob from bursting out. No wonder her lips were so swollen. "He tried to force me back to the estate," She explained, eyes still downcast. "Tried to get me back to the family business."

"What did you say?"

Lucy's eyes flashed up to Natsu's, still a bit of fire in them behind the sadness. "I said no, of course—I've found my home." She swallowed, throat aching. "With you. And—and with the guild."

Natsu nodded, letting out a tiny breath of relief. "Good," He nodded again, murmuring under his breath. "Good."

Lucy let her eyes fall closed. "He's arranged my marriage."

"He _what?_ " Natsu sputtered, eyes wide.

"To some competitor's son," Lucy muttered further, lips turning downwards. "It'll make him millions."

Natsu sat up straight. "No—you can't, that's fucking _bullshit_ —"

Lucy's right eye opened. "Don't worry, Natsu—I told him it wouldn't happen."

His left hand, which had balled itself into a fist, dropped to the floor once he met her eyes. He tried to think of something to say, but it was like he was choking on the words. He just looked at the girl, looked at the pain radiating from her heart.

The tears welled up in her eyes again. "I know I shouldn't have expected anything else," Lucy whispered, voice cracking, "I shouldn't have expected him to be any different. He was always like this—business first, Lucy last. But I just thought…" She trailed off, sucking in a breath. "After all this time, he still has the power to hurt me so deeply." She began to cry now, tears gently trailing down her cheeks.

Natsu's shoulders slumped and his face tangled up into a look of heartache.

Lucy's soft cries turned into sobs. She peered up at Natsu, pain saturating every fibre of her being. "Why do I have to love him?" Her hands were shaking—Natsu wasn't sure if it was out of fury or sadness. "After all that he's done…why do I have to love him?"

Natsu blinked, his own eyes becoming a little wet as he watched her break down. He put his head back, leaning it against the mattress as he had before; this time, he threw his arm over her shoulder, pulling her in. Lucy cradled into him, tucking her head into his chest, her left hand clutching his shirt as she cried into him.

"Because," Natsu whispered, petting the girl's hair as she cried, resting his cheek on the top of her head. Thoughts about the entire day flickered through his head: watching Gray grimace in pain at everything that reminded him of Juvia, watching Gray sob as the rain fell over him, watching Lucy cry because of the pain her father caused her. "Sometimes, we love someone even though it hurts, even though it burns."

"But _why?_ " Lucy looked up at him, searching for an answer.

Natsu swallowed, his own chest aching at the truth.

As a kid, he'd never thought about love. It had all been black and white—either you loved or you didn't. That was that.

But now, things were different. Love was different.

Gray hadn't loved Juvia, but here he was, in love and in pain and heartbroken over what he'd done to her. Juvia had loved Gray, loved him completely, but he'd hurt her enough and she couldn't allow it to go any further.

Erza loved Jellal and Jellal had loved Erza—but he needed to atone for his sins, make up for his past. He'd decided he wasn't ready for love, not until he'd made up for his bad deeds, and that was that. He'd left Erza behind, forced her to wait, forced her to face the colors of love every day alone.

And now, this. Lucy's father mistreated her and hurt her over and over, but she couldn't deny that she loved him. She couldn't hate him. He made her cry and he made her hurt and she still loved him.

Natsu knew the truth, now. It was the complex truth he'd never cared to think about as a child. It was a truth he had known all along, deep down, but one he'd feared to admit. It was the truth that he hadn't wanted to admit to himself—but he was forced to, now.

"Love isn't simple," He whispered to the girl, watching the way the light flickered against her brown eyes—god, how he loved those brown eyes. "Love is complicated and confusing and complex and a pain in the ass to figure out."

She'd come to the same realization, too, not too long ago.

They looked at each other, both pairs of eyes filled with sadness, understanding.

Thinking love was simple was naïve—and Natsu and Lucy were beginning to grow up, beginning to learn the reality of it.

Love was complicated. Love could hurt. Love was not kind.


	23. A Chance Meeting

Gray's bleak eyes stared down at the wooden table, tracing the lines of each splinter of wood in its form. He ran over the table again and again, watching as the caramel colors wove into brighter orangey-chestnut shades.

Lucy and Natsu had brought him to the guild today. He hadn't wanted to go, not even a little bit, but it had been a week since everything had fallen apart and he'd barely left Natsu's house. They wanted to take him out, get some air, have some good ol' human interaction—and so, they'd brought him to the guild. It was the most welcoming place, after all. It would do him some good.

Gray hadn't wanted to go. The guild was the last place he wanted to be. It was the place he'd ignored Juvia for months…the place where he let the love of his life slip by. It was where he'd hurt her in the most painful way. The guild brought back every memory, turned every cut in his heart into a gaping wound.

But, he'd played along, let his friends drag him to the guild hall. He could see the way he was affecting them—his misery was beginning to rub off on them, affect them. The way they looked at him, their eyes full of worry and pain…he couldn't say no. He went to the guild without a fight.

Mira had danced by, bringing a steaming plate of food to the table and placing it in front of him. She said something—there was a little conversation between Mira and Lucy—but the words were like white noise. All of the sounds of the guild—people chatting, laughing, messing around—were unintelligible. It was like his ears had given up on listening.

His dark eyes flashed up to the walls of the guild, searching around the room. This was his first time at the guild since gaining the ability to see colors. If it were different, if he wasn't in such a state…he'd be shocked by the vibrancy of the place. He'd be smiling. But the pain in his chest, the pronounced aches in chest…they dulled everything. It was like the colors were worn, like they weren't fully there. Like his eyes had given up, too.

Lucy sighed, watching her friend peer lifelessly around the room. She'd really been banking on the guild sort of pepping him up, putting a little life back into his step, but it didn't seem to have an affect; he was still as lifeless as ever, every bit of his expression falling flat.

"C'mon, Gray—lets look at the positives, okay?" Lucy spoke, her own voice a little devoid of expression. She cleared her throat, forcing some choppy cheeriness into her tone. "You got out of bed today. That's a step."

Gray's dark, lifeless eyes fluttered down to meet hers. His expression didn't change.

She cringed—alright, so that wasn't the _greatest_ motivational compliment she could've given him. But she couldn't think of anything else to say. It wasn't exactly easy telling someone that it was okay, that everything would be fine, when even she couldn't believe it herself.

Maybe a few months ago she would've been able to tell Gray that love works in mysterious ways, that the universe had a plan for him, that love would find a way. Maybe a few months ago she would've been able to tell him he could fight through this until things worked out the way they were supposed to. Maybe a few months ago, she would've been able to motivate this heartbroken boy.

But she just couldn't do it now. Not when she'd been tortured and battered by love.

She couldn't tell him things would be okay, that love would work itself out, because it wouldn't. Love didn't give a shit whether you were crying or hurting or not. Love did what it wanted and there wasn't anything you could do about it.

Lucy tucked a hair behind her ear, trying not to let her anger about love seep out. "You also put pants on. You haven't done that in five days. This is progress."

The black haired boy's left eyebrow cocked upwards a millimetre. Clearly, he wasn't impressed with Lucy's attempts at praise. He put his head down on the table, closing his eyes; he could hear Natsu and Lucy worriedly whispering to each other. He tried to drown it out, tried to clear his mind, but it didn't seem to be working.

"Maybe this was a bad idea," Lucy whispered. "Maybe we should've taken it slowly—taken him to the mall, or something else first."

Natsu blinked down at his friend, concern in his expression. "Yeah, maybe—I mean, he hasn't eaten in like two days. I haven't seen him skip a meal in ten years."

Gray let out a groan, his voice muffled by the table. "You guys don't have to whisper," He muttered. "I can hear you." He pulled himself back up to a sitting position, eyes flickering between his two friends.

The looks on their faces sent a shock through his chest. Their eyes…they were afraid. There was a strange darkness lingering behind their expressions, a sort of bitterness in their gazes. Everything that he was going through affected them—he could see that. They both looked…sort of scared.

Gray's heart stung. It was a small pain in comparison to what he'd been dealing with lately, but it was enough to make him blink out of shock.

"You guys…" Gray rumbled, eyes flickering back to the chestnut strip in the table. "You don't have to worry about me."

Natsu spoke, now. His voice was sharp, twinges of anger spitting out from his throat. "Yes, we do," He argued, shaking his head. "Gray—you're not eating, you're not showering, you're like a zombie. We're just supposed to let that go?"

Lucy agreed, but in a softer tone. "We can't just let you go on like this, Gray. We care about you, and we know you're dealing with some awful things, but we can't just let you rot in bed for the rest of your life."

Gray blinked, eyes still on the table.

There were so many different forms of love. Motherly, fatherly, friendly, romantically. For most of his life, he'd been actively avoiding them all. After losing his family, after losing Ur…the idea of love had scared him. He'd thought he was cursed. He'd thought the next person who loved him was sure to die.

So he'd gone on with his life, pushing love away and focusing on something else. He'd joined the guild and he'd gone on quests and he'd went forward alone. He'd thought he'd avoided love. Then, when Juvia came…it scared him even more. Love had found him. He pushed her away as much as possible. He ran from love.

But sitting here in the guild, watching the fire and fear in his two best friends' eyes, Gray realized he'd been wrong the entire time. He'd thought that he'd run from love, that he'd pushed it away completely…but he hadn't.

He'd made friends. He'd let people in. He'd let Natsu in, way back then, and he'd let Lucy in now.

Gray looked at his two best friends, letting out a shaky breath. "Do you want to know what it's like?" He asked, voice crackling with pain.

Lucy blinked. "What _what's_ like?"

"Having a soul mate—knowing who they are, finding them."

Natsu watched his friend carefully, not really sure where he was headed with this. "Sure."

Gray smiled. It was a sad and painful smile, but somehow happy at the same time. Melancholic. "It's the best," He murmured softly, eyes glazing over as he looked off into the distance. "That moment…that instant where you realize they're the one, that they're the one for you…there's nothing like it. It's like every good moment you've ever had rolled up into one. It's like every ounce of adrenaline pumps through you. Your stomach goes fuzzy and it's like someone turns the lights on in the world. Everything is bright and it's neon and it's just for you."

Lucy swallowed, her throat thick. Gray's words were soft, dreamy…they were how she used to look at love. It was that romantic way she used to daydream about falling in love, seeing color, finding her soulmate.

Gray's voice quieted to a raspy whisper, still in that lovestruck daze. "And when you see her for the first time after you can see color, it's like nothing else has ever mattered. It's the most perfect feelings. Like everything about her glows."

Natsu's eyes were wide; his expression fell serious as he listened to his friend describe love.

"And do you know what it's like when that love isn't enough?" Gray asked, the sweet smile slipping from his lips to reveal something darker. "Do you know what it's like when your soulmate rejects you?"

Lucy shook her head, throat too thick for any words to come out.

Gray blinked, his eyes getting wet. "It crushes you. The pain…it manifests physically. It's like all of your limbs are being ripped apart, like someone is hacking at your chest with an axe." He paused, turning his eyes down to the table as a tear dripped down his cheek. He wiped it away. "You realize all of the things you've done wrong, all of the things you've done that have hurt her…and you realize you never deserved her anyways. You still see all of the colors she gave to you and you want to rip your eyes out. You want to set yourself on fire because you can't believe what you did to her. The aching in your limbs, the burning in your veins—it's not enough to make things right. You feel awful and you regret everything and nothing will ever make it better."

"Gray…" Lucy whispered, her own voice breaking at her friend's pain.

Gray met the blonde's eyes, his expression filled with torment. "I wish I'd done better."

Lucy nodded, lips turning down at the corners. "I know, Gray. I know."

Another stray tear trickled down Gray's cheek and he wiped it away, shaking his head and sniffling; he let out a big breath, pulling himself together. He cleared his throat. "Sorry to unload. Just gotta…get it out sometimes."

Natsu, expression still painfully serious, gave the dark haired boy a nod. "Don't apologize."

Gray ran a hand through his hair. He spoke, trying to turn the attention off of himself. He seemed better now—not fixed, by any means, but not as weighed down by the pain he'd bore alone. "How's things with you guys? Other than dealing with me for the past week."

"Gray, you don't need to—"

"No, really," Gray murmured, looking at the two before him. "I want to know how you are. Enough pity about me."

Lucy looked at Natsu; their eyes locked. They'd both been dealing with their own revelations the past few days, struggling to keep it together. Lucy had been horrified by what love was capable of; Natsu had been shocked by the reality of how complex love truly was. Neither was exactly in a great place, but they didn't want to unload this onto Gray, who already had enough to deal with.

So, they just stared at one another, the silence settling amongst the trio.

Gray nodded, understanding what that silence meant. "I see." He let out a breath. "Guess we've all got our burdens."

Before any of them got the chance to speak, the door to the guild hall swung open; there was a bit of chatter sweeping through the hall before practically everyone fell silent. A weird vibe washed through the crowds, through the tables, enough to hit the rather sad trio and make them look up.

Lucy peered up at the door, her heart nearly stopping when she realized who had just stepped into the building. Suddenly, it made perfect sense as to why everyone had fallen silent—Juvia had just walked in, along with Levy and Gajeel.

"Gray, don't—"

Gray's face was twisted up into a funny expression. It was an odd mixture of pain, suffering, and complete and utter joy. The happiness of seeing your soulmate struggling with the torture of not having her…it was enough to crush his ribs with the weight of the pain. "It's okay, Lucy."

Gray turned, glancing to the door, looking at the girl he'd been thinking about the entire week.

Lucy's eyebrows tugged down slightly as she watched his face. She swore the second he looked at Juvia his features lightened. It was like the pain that had flooded his veins was eased by her presence. Honestly, he looked…totally in love.

Juvia seemed a little stunned by the reaction of the guild; the quietness made her glance around questioningly. When her eyes landed on Gray, it all made sense. She shifted awkwardly, turning to face Levy quickly, turning so her back was facing Gray.

Lucy could see Levy whispering to Juvia, trying to calm her down, trying to reassure her. Juvia seemed to be shaking her head, whispering to Levy and Gajeel about something; she stepped towards the door but Gajeel stopped her, whispering to her softly.

To everyone else in the guild, it might've seemed like it was just an awkward encounter. It might've looked like Juvia wanted to avoid Gray, like it was embarrassing that they'd ended up in the same place at the same time, and that was all. But Lucy knew better.

Lucy had seen the way Gray's face had twisted up the second he'd seen Juvia. Despite all of the pain, despite all of the regret and horror and grief he felt about what he'd done to her, the spark had returned to his eyes when he'd saw her. Despite all of the pain of rejection, he was still completely in love with her, and it had shown on his face.

Lucy knew Juvia still loved Gray—she'd seen it firsthand. Juvia could still see color. If that was the case, then Juvia must be experiencing something similar to Gray.

It wasn't an awkward encounter. Juvia wasn't whispering with Gajeel and Levy because she was embarrassed she'd encountered Gray—no, she was whispering because she'd seen him and she'd instantly been sucker punched by love. Seeing him must've sent her spine tingling and sent her heart flying, just like it had so clearly done for Gray.

Juvia was struggling. Even from their far seats, Lucy could tell. The girl's shoulders were heaving with every breath; her hands were clutching the sides of her skirt like her life depended on it. It must be hard, walking in, seeing your true love and trying not to run to them. It must hurt like hell to try and stick to your guns, to try and not love them with everything you had.

Gray's face crumpled slightly when he realized that Juvia was crying. The guild hall was so damn quiet that he could hear her little sobs. It wasn't hard to realize that the water mage was trying to hold back her tears.

He loved her. He wanted to run over there, wrap his arms around her, kiss her and hug her. He wanted to tell her he was sorry for everything he'd ever done, that he was sorry for ever turning her down. He wanted to apologize for trying to run from love. He wanted to give her everything he had, give her his heart.

But he loved her too much to disrespect her wishes like that. Juvia had decided that she would put herself first, not fall prey to love after it had hurt her so badly, and Gray loved her too much to disagree with her wishes. He loved her enough to give her what she wanted, even if it killed him.

So, Gray stood. He pulled himself up and pushed away from his seat.

Natsu made a face. "Gray—where are you going?"

Gray nodded over his shoulder. "C'mon—let's go."

The ice mage stepped away from the table, headed towards the guild doors; Lucy and Natsu scrambled to get out of their seats, to catch up to him, following behind him quickly.

Gray made his way to the front of the hall, each step bringing him closer to the love of his life; but, rather than walk straight up to her, he hooked a left, choosing instead to go around her, giving a wide space between them. He headed for the front doors, choosing to leave rather than to stay.

As he walked by, his dark eyes locked with Juvia's. She stared at him, confusion and hurt and pain and love clear as day on her face. And rather than run to her, Gray simply gave her a nod. A simple little sign, a signal that he loved her, that he respected her, that he wanted the best for her. It killed him, seeing her like that, right there in front of him, but he loved her enough to do it.

Juvia's mouth fell open slightly, knowing the significance of the move. The nod, leaving the hall…

It meant he loved her.

Gray pushed through the big wooden doors, stepping out into the evening air; Lucy and Natsu were close behind him. They walked a few steps, letting the doors swing shut behind them, before commenting on what had just happened.

Lucy, of course, was concerned about his wellbeing. "Gray, are you alright after that?"

Natsu, naturally, wasn't as worried. "That was ballsy as fuck, Gray! Did you see her face?"

Gray rolled his eyes, ignoring his two friends.

He'd seen her. Juvia. His soulmate. And yeah, maybe they weren't together and yeah, maybe she didn't want anything to do with him, but he'd seen her. And he'd seen her eyes, and the way they lit up when she saw him. He knew what it meant. She still loved him.

Maybe his heart still hurt and he still regretted ever hurting her, but he was okay right now. He'd cried his brains out for a week and he'd practically turned into a zombie, but he was okay. Seeing her…it had made things better, not worse.

He still had a long ways to go. Maybe she'd forgive him in a year or maybe three, or maybe she'd never forgive him at all. But he loved her and he'd listen to her. That was his move. That was how he would win her over. He'd wait for her, as long as she wanted, and he'd fight for her. Leaving the guild hall, respecting her decision to not be with him, giving her space…that was him fighting for her. For once, he was giving her what she wanted.

They both knew what that meant. They both knew what had just happened.

They were both in love.

Gray, Lucy and Natsu walked around Magnolia for a while, far too hyped up from the incident at the hall to go and lounge about any longer. They made their way down main street, people watching to pass the time. They chatted about unimportant things, laughing and joking around.

It was almost like before—before anyone had been concerned about love, about the pain and the happiness.

It was like a weight had been lifted from Gray's shoulders. And seeing him smile for the first time in a week, well, that made Lucy and Natsu smile. Because maybe love wasn't as awful as they'd thought, maybe it wasn't cruel. Maybe human circumstances made it seem confusing and terrible and bad—but perhaps love on its own wasn't.

Lucy smiled at her two friends, the doubt in her heart beginning to flutter away.

Juvia and Gray, despite everything, loved each other. They still lit each other's hearts up. There was still hope.

Maybe it was a sign, Lucy thought. Maybe there was still hope for her, hope for love.

She watched as Natsu gave Gray a wet willy, feeling the warmth in her chest spread.

She hadn't given up—not yet. There was still a gap in her world, a missing color, but she couldn't give up. Not when she had yet to see a rainbow.

The trio continued to walk through the city, smiling and laughing, light as air. It was like nothing could go wrong, not after they'd dealt with the worst love had to offer and made it through. They'd survived the pain—they could make it through.

Natsu tossed his arms over Lucy and Gray's shoulders, hugging them close as they walked through the dimly lit streets, the sun beginning to set overhead.

Lucy smiled, the happiest she'd been since everything fell apart.

Until a voice called out to her.

"Lucy?"

Lucy spun, still smiling; once she saw the familiar face, her expression crumbled away. Her heart stopped, her hands balling up into fists. The ache in her ribs returned instantly, a horrible reminder of the pain love could cause.

Natsu looked at the stranger, a frown on his face. He glanced down at Lucy, noting her expression. His eyes flashed back up to the stranger, eyebrows tugging down. His fists warmed up, flames threatening to lash out.

He knew who this was.

Lucy swallowed, finally acknowledging the man before her.

"Dad."


	24. This Is The Last Time

Natsu's head swung, his dark eyes flashing back to the man that stood across from the trio. He ran his gaze over the older fellow, instantly noting the similarities between the stranger and the girl beside him; the way the man held his chin up, the stubborn look in his eyes…they were all reminiscent of Lucy.

Lucy let out a shaky breath, body language quickly spelling out the scene for those who didn't know what was going on; she took a step back, both of her hands reaching out and gripping Natsu's sleeve. She twisted her body, slightly shielding herself with her arms. It was very clear how she felt about this man.

Natsu's brain flickered back to a recent memory, one of Lucy sobbing on her bedroom floor because of the pain her father had caused her. The words she'd said that night had stuck with the boy, scared the hell out of him. Not because of _what_ she'd said—that her father had arranged her marriage to a competitor, that her father had visited in the hopes of forcing Lucy back to the estate, to the family business—but because of how she'd said it. The way Lucy had spoken that night, telling Natsu about the horrific things her father had done…it was incredibly clear that her father had broken her. He'd broken her spirit and he'd broken her heart, and the pain seeping out of her voice with every whisper was so raw it almost hurt to listen.

Those memories of Lucy being broken on that bedroom floor, eyes bleary and heart damaged, desperately asking why she still loved her father after all of the mistreatment—they stung Natsu's chest.

His jaw locked, arms flexing as his hands balled up into fists. He squared his shoulders with the man standing across the gap, his right arm reaching out and tugging Lucy into the space behind his back, safe from the prying eyes of her father. Lucy didn't argue; she pressed her forehead to the boy's back, small hands clinging to the fabric of his clothing, trying to calm her breathing.

The older man narrowed his eyes slightly, head tilting inquisitively. "And you are?" His voice was strong, projecting dominance. His tone was even and calm, unfazed by young man. It was a power play.

Natsu glared at the old man for a long moment before spitting out a response. "Salamander," He snarled, "Of Fairy Tail."

Gray's eyes were wide as he watched the showdown play out in front of him. He didn't really know what was going on, but he could pick up the gist of it—Lucy's father was here, Lucy seemed unhappy to see him, Natsu seemed downright angry at the sight of the man. Clearly, there was some backstory he'd need to be filled in on.

But, still. The way Natsu stood, chest out, fists tense, one hand still reaching back and touching Lucy's arm—it was clear that this wasn't some small dispute. The fact that Natsu had called himself _Salamander_ —a nickname given to him by the media—made it incredibly clear to Gray that this was a big deal. The way the fire mage stood, the way he spoke, the name he'd called himself—this was a show of dominance between Natsu and Lucy's father. They were grappling for power.

"Fairy Tail?" The older man spoke, eyebrow raising lazily, as if he couldn't be concerned with the boy. "Never heard of it."

Natsu scoffed. Fairy Tail was currently the most powerful and successful guild in the entire continent—by this point, it wasn't possible to have never heard of them, unless you were a hermit. The annoyance was beginning to build in the boy's throat. "My _ass_ you've never heard of it—" He began, but was cut off quickly.

"I think its about time you ran off," Lucy's father spoke, voice deep and strong. "I need to speak with my daughter."

"If you think I'm letting you anywhere _near_ her, you're an idiot."

"If _you_ think you have any authority over me and my daughter, then—"

"Just _stop it_!" A small voice shouted from behind Natsu's back, exasperated. "That's enough!"

All three men turned to look at Lucy, eyes wide. She stepped around Natsu, eyes wet but the tears not yet spilling onto her cheeks. Her expression was something between fury and being absolutely destroyed. Natsu could tell, just by looking at her, that seeing her father was breaking her heart all over again.

Lucy looked her father square in the eyes, all hints of rage dissipating into sorrow the second their eyes met. She'd intended for her voice to be strong, to be angry; she'd wanted to yell at him, scream at him, tell him that he'd ruined her life and that she wanted nothing to do with him. She wanted to hurt him back, just like he'd hurt her all of these years. She wanted to break his heart.

But she couldn't.

Her voice was weak, cracking as she spoke. The words came out as a whisper.

"Why do you have to do this?" The girl whispered. "Why do you have to keep hurting me?" She swallowed, trying to keep the sobs stuck in her chest. A long moment passed, tears streaming down her cheeks now, before she managed to whimper, "What more do you want from me?"

Lucy's father seemed frozen in place, eyes wide, mouth slightly agape. He watched his daughter, stared at her as the tears he caused ran down her cheeks, dripping off of her chin. It looked as though his guards, his walls of dominance and power that he'd been employing before came crashing down; his expression crumbled into a look of shock and woe. His own eyes seemed a little more wet than before.

"Lucy…" He murmured, the strong tone of his voice fading just as quickly as his powerful façade. "Lucy, I just want to talk to you. Please."

She wiped tears off of her cheek with the back of her hand. "How many times do we have to do this?" She sniffed. "I don't think I can handle it, dad. I can't let you disappoint me anymore."

"Please," He urged, and it seemed like he really meant it. "Please, Lucy, can we talk?"

She hesitated, seeing him like that. That look on his face—pain, sadness, misery—it was something she'd never seen him express before. And for a split second, she thought about saying okay—she imagined sitting with him, talking with him. She imagined a life where her father loved her, where they could speak and laugh and enjoy time together. She imagined him loving her as much as she loved him, the family business be damned.

But she'd thought of this before. She'd imagined that future over and over for years. Every time he reached out to her, she'd think of that damn fantasy and let him in, and he'd crush her. He'd destroy her every time. First, he'd forgotten her birthday as a child. He hadn't held her once her mother passed. He'd forgotten to tell her he was leaving on business trips. He'd forget to speak with her at all. It had gotten progressively worse every time. Each time she let him in, he would break her heart in the blink of an eye.

Lucy looked at her father one last time, tears streaming out of her bloodshot eyes, and shook her head. "No. This is the last time. Goodbye, Dad."

She spun on her heels, expression breaking down completely once she knew her father wouldn't be able to see. Lucy stepped forward, reaching for Natsu, needing some kind of support; his long arms grabbed her easily and she slid against his chest, eyes slamming shut.

Natsu held the girl against him carefully, glancing up quickly to see Lucy's father turn away to wipe his eyes. Something about that exchange had changed something inside of the boy; watching the older man wipe tears from his cheeks made Natsu's chest ache.

Natsu knew what he had to do. Maybe it wasn't the right thing to do, maybe he shouldn't bother wasting his time…but he couldn't let things be left like this.

"Gray," Natsu murmured, "Can you take her home?"

Gray blinked, grabbing Lucy and supporting her. "Uh, sure—where are you going?"

Natsu swallowed. "I just have something I need to do."

Lucy sniffled, eyes blearily glancing up at the fire mage. "Natsu? You're not coming?"

Seeing Lucy in such a state, and now sniffling at the idea of him not going home with her sent pangs through his heart. His big hands petted her head, pushing the tear-soaked hair out of her eyes, tucking it behind her ears. "I'll be there soon, Luce—promise." He let out a little breath, a lump beginning to rise in his throat. "Don't worry."

Natsu gave Gray a little nod, and the ice mage began to lead Lucy down the street, in the direction of her apartment; Natsu watched them until they turned a corner and were out of sight, hoping to god he could make this fast so he could get back to Lucy as quickly as possible.

Letting out another sigh, Natsu turned, eyes now landing on Lucy's father across the street. He debated changing his mind—if he ran, he could catch up to Gray and Lucy in ten seconds—but eventually settled on his original plan. Feeling rather shitty—it wasn't easy seeing your beautiful best friend have her heart utterly shattered twice within four days—Natsu took slow steps, making his way to the older man.

Lucy's father was turned the other way, still wiping his cheeks; when he heard the footsteps approach him, he turned.

Natsu, expression still a little hard and his jaw still locked, stuck his hand out. "My name is Natsu."

Lucy's father blinked at the boy, a little shocked that he was still here. "Um," He mumbled, grasping the boy's hand and giving it a firm shake. "Jude."

"Jude." Natsu nodded to himself, trying to remember it. "Listen—I'm not here to apologize for the way I acted, and I'm not here to apologize for Lucy either." He let out a breath. "I just…I know seeing you breaks Lucy's heart, but I know you've done things that have hurt her, and I couldn't let her go on with her life without an explanation."

Jude sucked in a breath, looking rather miserable. "I don't think she wants one."

"She does," Natsu replied abruptly. "She acts tough and puts up a good front, but I know she'll be wondering for the rest of her life why she wasn't good enough for you—and I just can't allow that."

Jude was silent for a couple long moments, eyes on the pavement. After about a minute, he glanced up, looking at Natsu. "How exactly…do you know my daughter?"

Natsu made a face. "We're both in the guild—we're friends."

Something about Jude's expression made it seem like he didn't quite believe the boy—about which part, Natsu couldn't quite pinpoint. The older man fell silent again, his heavy eyebrows drawing down over his eyes a bit. He clearly had a lot on his mind.

When Jude finally spoke, the sadness was audible in his voice. "You seem like a nice fellow, the way you take care of my daughter."

Natsu's eyes dropped, not making eye contact. Something about being _here_ rather than with Lucy made him feel guilty—like he wasn't doing his job. "I try my best." He gritted his teeth, trying to push the guild and thoughts of Lucy to the back of his mind—he was doing this for a reason. _For Lucy_.

As much as he wanted to sock the guy, Natsu had to keep his rage at bay. He needed to do this. He couldn't let Lucy be confused and blame herself for this for the rest of her life. Natsu needed an explanation.

The older man let out a sigh; he was exhausted, and it was beginning to show on his face. He was older now, and couldn't handle things as well. The stress of the family business had begun to weigh on him, and the stresses of everything with Lucy was overwhelming. The bags under his eyes were puffy and dark. "I appreciate that."

Natsu's eyes narrowed. "Do you?"

"What?"

The young man crossed his arms. "Do you appreciate it? All you seem to do is come back and torture Lucy—do you even really care?"

Jude blinked, surprised by the outburst. "Of course I care. Why do you think I came here? Why do you think I tried to bring her home?"

"So you can make millions by pawning her off to some business partner," Natsu muttered, shaking his head. "Lucy told me everything."

The older man let out a sigh; it sounded as if a lot were weighing on him. "Listen—I know it sounds that way. But I worry about Lucy, coming out here all alone, with only a coin purse filled with money. I didn't know if she'd be safe. I didn't know if she would find a place to stay, or food to eat. I try—I was trying to provide for her. The arranged marriage…it would guarantee her a good quality of life for as long as she lived."

"You can try and spin it like you're a nice guy, but I'm not buying it," Natsu replied flatly. "No good parent would arrange their daughter's marriage _against her will_ for the sake of profit."

Jude was beginning to get frustrated; his jaw flexed. "I wanted her to be safe! I wanted her to have a home!"

"She has one!" Natsu snarled, fingertips hot as flames threatened to burst out. "Here, at the guild, with me—she has a home, she's completely safe, and she's finally happy. Until _you_ showed up."

"I never meant to hurt her!"

Natsu shook his head. "It doesn't matter if you _meant_ to or not—you still did. Over and over and over again. Do you even know how much you've made her cry? Do you understand how much you've broken her heart? She still cares about you, and all you do is trample all over her!"

"You don't understand—"

"She's happy here. Quit trying to force her to go back to your estate. Don't force her to marry some rich snob just so _you_ can make millions. And don't try and shift the blame so your suddenly the good guy looking out for her."

"Natsu, I—"

Natsu was angry, now. All of the fury and rage he'd shoved aside was front and centre, making his blood boil. His hands began to glow red-hot, flames ready to bounce out from his skin if he desired. His vision had gone red. "Stop acting like you give a shit about Lucy. Just go away, leave her alone."

That seemed to make Jude snap. " _I do give a shit!_ " He yelled, raw power echoing through his lungs. "Don't you dare tell me I don't give a shit about my daughter, because I do! I've made a lot of mistakes throughout my life, and I never seem to make them right, but don't you dare say that I don't give a shit."

Natsu still wasn't convinced. Still, he stayed silent as Jude spoke, listening.

Jude's fists were tight, his cheeks flushed; as he spoke, his eyes began to well up with tears. "I've neglected her for a long time, and I know that. I've done awful things to her. I came here, tried to force her home, even when I shouldn't have. And I know that, now. I've realized how terrible I've been. But believe me…when I did those things before, I didn't understand how much it affected her. But coming here, seeing her stand up to me…" He trailed off, trying not to cry. "I know I don't deserve to be in her life anymore, and I'm not trying to defy that. I just…I wanted to say goodbye. That's why I'm still here."

Natsu looked at the man, noting that Jude's anguish seemed legitimate. "So, coming up to us on the street today, you—"

"I wasn't trying to convince her to come back. I wasn't going to force her. It's taken me a while, but I think I know what I've done wrong, especially with Lucy. And I wanted to make it right."

"You just wanted to say goodbye?" Natsu cleared his throat—it was suddenly very tight.

Jude nodded, a stray tear sliding down his cheek. "One last goodbye, and then I would leave her alone forever."

The fire in Natsu's stomach had settled by the realization that _no_ , Lucy's father hadn't been staging another attempt at forcing Lucy back to her old life. The idea that Jude had simply wanted to say goodbye to his daughter one last time…well, it kind of made Natsu sad.

"I'm sorry you didn't get the goodbye you wanted."

Jude shook his head, tears still in his eyes. "It's okay. Maybe it's better this way, for her. Doing it so suddenly, not dragging it out."

"So, you're headed back then?"

"My train is at nine."

"Ah." Natsu said with a small nod, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

"One thing before I go," Jude mumbled, turning and digging through his shiny black briefcase. He fumbled in there for a while before pulling out a rolled up piece of paper; the thing was bound by a shiny ribbon. "Natsu, would you mind…giving this to her?"

Natsu stepped forward, grabbing the parchment from him. "Sure."

"It's just…" Jude sighed. "Just make sure she reads it, please."

Natsu gave him a nod. "Will do."

Jude glanced at his watch. "I better head to the station—don't want to miss my train."

"Right." Natsu gave him a little wave. His expression transformed into a little frown, and he spoke up before Jude managed to get too far away. "Hey—can I ask something?"

Jude paused, turning back. "Sure."

"What made you realize?" Natsu asked, curious. "What about coming _here_ made you realize you had done awful things to her?"

Sucking in a slow breath, Jude murmured out his response. "It was her eyes."

Natsu frowned. "Her eyes?"

"Yeah, those eyes. They look just like her mother's did. Her eyes finally looked happy—until we fought." He paused, a nostalgic smile on his lips, but sadness in his eyes. "The last time I saw eyes like that with so much happiness in them…" He trailed off, letting out a heavy breath, before turning his attention back to Natsu. "I could tell she was supposed to stay, right then and there. Her eyes...there's only one kind of happiness like that."

Natsu made a face, his head cocking to the side. "What kind of happiness?"

"The happiness you get when you fall in love."

The boy's head tilted even further. "In…love?"

Jude gave a wave over his shoulder. "It was nice meeting you, Natsu—I wish it had been under better circumstances." He walked off, headed towards the train station, hands clutching his slick black briefcase as though it were all he had left.

Natsu stood there for a long moment, staring off into the distance. He wasn't exactly sure why he was frozen stiff, but it was like his limbs weren't capable of moving. The sun was setting overhead and it was starting to get a bit chilly out, but he still stood there.

Lucy's…in love?

The only thing that snapped Natsu out of his little daze was Wakaba walking by; he clapped his hand on Natsu's shoulder as he passed by, murmuring a 'how's it going' from between his teeth and his cigar.

Natsu snapped back to life, muttering, "Ah—oh, Hey, Wakaba!" before realizing that he was wasting even more time not being with Lucy right now. Clutching the note from Jude tightly in his grasp, Natsu made his way to Lucy's house, making it there in record time.

Natsu swore to himself that he was just desperate to give Lucy her father's note, and that it had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Lucy was supposedly in love with someone. Okay, maybe it had a little do to with that. After all, who the hell could it be? _Gray? Elfman? Laxus? Erza?_

But every single thought in Natsu's brain disappeared the second the door to Lucy's apartment swung open, because suddenly she was there and she was diving at him, wrapping her arms around his torso, hugging him tightly. She wasn't crying anymore—enough time had passed for her to run completely dry—but she was still upset and sniffly, and the only thing she wanted in the world was for her best friend to say everything was going to be okay.

And so, he did. He hugged her back and he told her everything would be okay, and when she snuggled into his chest he kissed the top of her head because it had only been an hour since they'd been together, but his ribs had been aching because he'd missed her so much.

And when she finally settled down and asked where he'd been, he told her. He'd talked to her father, he said. He'd asked him some things. And then, he gave her the note.

Lucy frowned down at the parchment, all wrapped up with a bow. "What's this?"

"A letter," Natsu said, heart still a little tender from her hugging him like that.

Lucy frowned further. "From who?"

"Your father."


	25. There Goes The Fear

Lucy's eyes narrowed at the thick paper, her gaze tracing across every word three or four times. Once she'd read each sentence several times in her mind, she'd whisper it out loud, as if that somehow made the words register further in her brain.

It had taken her a minute to convince herself she should read the damn letter. She'd wrestled with the idea of chucking it in the trash, not giving it a glance; she'd wanted to pretend she didn't care about her father, didn't care about anything he had to say. But the more she glared at the parchment, the more she realized how much she _did_ care. It hurt her and it stung right down to her very core, but she loved her father.

So, she read it. She pulled the satin string off of the note, rolling it out slowly. She'd looked at Natsu, eyes big and unsure; he'd given her a little nod, encouraging her.

She'd half expected it to be another request to return to the estate. She'd figured it would be her father explaining himself, detailing why his proposition was the best idea. But she was wrong. Her father had surprised her.

Lucy read the letter out loud, voice trembling.

* * *

 _Dear Lucy,_

 _I met your mother when I was eighteen. We weren't supposed to meet—we were from two completely opposite worlds, worlds that aren't supposed to cross paths._

 _I was from a long line of wealthy businessmen, a family line that was well-respected throughout the country. Historically, we were nobles; as government emerged and royal ties faded, my family took advantage of their respected position and created a business. This business has continued down throughout the family, and it is the business that I run today._

 _Ever since I was a child, my father groomed me to take over the family business. I'd been taught to hold my head high, to understand my worth, to convey myself with dignity and poise. As I grew up, I was completely cushioned from any struggles that normal people faced. I didn't worry about money, about finding a meal, about finding a job. Everything was given to me on a silver platter. Safe to say, by the time I'd turned eighteen, I was a real prick._

 _My father had sent me out on a task—it was his first real test to see if I was worthy of having a place in the family business. I was to go to town, have a meeting with some potential investors, and try to sway them to channel some funds into the business._

 _I'd walked to town, not phased at all by the task ahead of me. I'd been groomed for this since I was a little boy—I knew everything I had to know, had the charisma to charm the investors. I'd figured it was a guaranteed win for me._

 _I'd been daydreaming as I made my way through the city streets, thinking about when I would receive the family business and become the heir to the family estate. I must not have been watching where I was going—I bumped into a girl, making her drop her basket of washed clothes onto the dirty street._

 _I tried to apologize, but didn't really get the chance. The girl turned around and started screaming at me. There was no hesitation at all—she just began berating me. She called me an uppity snob, a no-good asshole with no consideration for others. And I would've apologized, offered her a bit of money to make up for it—but I couldn't. I couldn't speak, I couldn't move._

 _This girl kept screaming at me, yelling at my carelessness, but I just stared at her. She was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen in my entire life. The second I looked into her eyes, it was like my entire world had shifted, like gravity was different and now she was the centre of my universe. Everything around me changed, bursting into color—and it made sense, like it was a missing puzzle piece that I'd finally put into place. I'd never met this girl before, but it had very suddenly dawned on me that she was what I had been missing all along._

 _I tried to speak, but the words wouldn't come out—I was completely caught off guard by my sudden realization. The girl finally quit yelling; she glared at me, called me an idiot, gathered her laundry from the street, and left._

 _It took me fifteen minutes to be able to think clearly enough to take a step. I didn't know where she'd gone or who she was, but I knew I had to find her again. Unfortunately, the meeting with the investors was in five minutes—I knew if I didn't go to the meeting, my father would give me an unbearable punishment. So, I ran to the meeting, my mind far too focused on the girl to even give a single thought towards investments and stocks and business._

 _I had the worst meeting of my life. I could hardly speak. I'd forgotten everything my father had ever taught me. My mind was on the girl. She was all that my brain could focus on. The investors rejected my request on the spot—apparently, I hadn't won them over like I'd initially expected._

 _I didn't care. After the meeting, I wandered around the city for hours, looking for the girl. I knocked on people's doors, asked random people on the street, and no one seemed to pay any attention to me. After all, these were a lower class of people, and to them, I was a snobby rich child that had been shielded from every struggle they'd ever faced. They laughed in my face as they ignored my questions. But I didn't give up._

 _I found her, hours later, at the local pub. I was exhausted and I was starving and I figured I'd get a meal in before I headed back to the estate to face the wrath of my father. I'd gone into the pub, trying to ignore the stares of the locals. Things started to get a bit rowdier once I entered the pub; the locals weren't pleased that an upperclass brat had dared to enter their place. I tried to mind my own business, not bother anyone, but I was beginning to hear murmurs of threats and whispers of a fight._

 _Before I knew it, someone had sat down beside me at the bar. To my shock, it was the girl from before. Just being in the same vicinity as her seemed to put me at ease. The colors were brighter when she was around._

 _She told me not to get too excited, she wasn't sitting with me because she wanted to—she was only doing so to protect me from the drunk locals that vehemently wanted me out of their bar. She was well liked and respected in her community, and once she sat beside me and chatted with me, the locals seemed to back off slightly._

 _One thing lead to another, and we began to chat. My apologies for bumping her earlier lead into further conversation. I ended up sitting there all night with the girl, and she told me stories about her life in the city and her family and where she came from._

 _She was your mother, Lucy._

 _A long time ago, your mother's family was well respected, just like mine. In fact, your mother's family was probably even higher class than mine ever was; your mother's family was filled with powerful mages that the royals often hired to deal with issues with magic across the country. One of these issues, however, lead to the family's downfall. Although details are scarce—the royal family made all of the missions top secret and confidential—this last mission involved an incredibly strong threat to the nation. However, once the royal family's power crumbled and a political body took over power of the country—the hierarchy faded to a democracy—all close allies of the royal family were shamed. Your mother's family was treated terribly, and they fell from a powerful high class family of mages to a low class group scrounging for food and struggling to make ends meet during the financial depression._

 _Of course, this all happened long before your mother was even born. Your mom had never lived a life of luxury; she'd grown up working hard to keep her head above the water, to stay alive._

 _We weren't meant to meet, me and her. I was wealthy and headed for the family business; she was poor and working every odd job she could find just to keep a roof over her head, like most low class families were._

 _We fell in love quickly. She was so funny and charming and smart—it was easy to understand why she was my soul mate. She set my world on fire with color. I'm not exactly sure what she found so appealing about me—I was a snob and I was spoiled and I had no understanding of the real world—but fell for me just as hard._

 _She'd told me that I didn't make her see color, but something deep in her soul knew that I was the right one for her._

 _My family never approved of the relationship, my father in particular. He thought I was disrespecting the business by associating myself with Layla. He'd beat me and shout at me. But I always chose her. When my father gave me a choice—the business or Layla—I chose her. My father said I would never see another penny from the business, from my family._

 _I didn't care. I was happy. I was in love. My father…he'd never found his soul mate. He'd never seen color. He didn't understand, and I knew I wouldn't be able to convince him._

 _Layla and I moved in together, on the outskirts of town. I worked at the quarry, and she worked oddjobs throughout the city whenever she could. We made things work. It was hard for me—I'd never worked physical labour before, I'd never struggled with not having enough money for rent and food before—but I made it through. The townspeople began to like me. This is the point in my life where I learned my work ethic—hard work wasn't easy, but it was worth it._

 _A few years had passed, and I'd finally saved up enough money to buy a ring. I'd known since the second I'd met her that Layla would be my wife. When I proposed, she said yes so loudly I'd thought my eardrum had ruptured. But it didn't matter—nothing did. Because I was with my soulmate, my Layla, and everything was perfect._

 _I visited the estate and told my father that we were getting married. He was ill—years of smoking and drinking had finally begun to affect him—but he seemed so happy to see me. His last wife had passed away over a year before, and he'd been so lonely. None of my brothers had ever come back to visit him. He insisted on paying for the wedding—it was his way of thanking me for returning to see him._

 _Our wedding day was the happiest day of my life—that is, until you were born, Lucy. I finally married the woman I loved, and my heart had never felt more full. Your mother cried when we said our vows—she was always such a softie—and her eyes stole my breath away. I'd never seen such happiness radiating from someone's eyes before. It was the look of true love._

 _My father passed away not long after our wedding. In his will, he'd given me the entire family business. Despite telling me I'd never receive another penny from him or the business, my father seemed to have softened in his old age; loneliness had overwhelmed him before he'd passed._

 _In his honor, I carried on the business. It was a different lifestyle than Layla and I were used to, but we made it work. We moved into the family estate. Suddenly, we had maids and a chef and a butler and staff to do our bidding. It was a little strange at first, but I slipped back into my old lifestyle fairly well. Layla never seemed to phase into it—she would much rather befriend the staff than give them orders._

 _We were happy there, living a life of luxury. We made sure our riches were spread amongst ourselves and our friends, back in town. We rebuilt homes for the poor in the city, donated thousands upon thousands to the foodbanks every year. We would buy hundreds of presents for the low class townspeople and give them gifts on Christmas. We wanted to be sure that our wealth wasn't just for us—it was for the people._

 _When you were born, Lucy, our entire world changed again. I didn't think it was possible to feel such overwhelming love for two people. The sight of you made my heart burst._

 _When Layla held you for the first time, her eyes lit up just like they had on our wedding day. She whispered to me, telling me that she could see colors, that she could see them the second she looked at you. I cried that night, holding the both of you, because I was so unbearably happy._

 _Your mother became ill when you were six. She tried to hide it, tried to act like she was fine because she didn't want you to know anything was wrong. She'd take you for walks to your special spot; when she came back she would nearly collapse out of exhaustion. I demanded she see a doctor—at first, she refused. But, as she became weaker and weaker, she agreed._

 _It was a magical deficiency disease. She'd had it from birth, a genetic defect that could randomly arise and begin showing symptoms. Her magic power was depleting rapidly. There were things we could do to improve her state, but there was no cure. Once she ran out of magic power completely, she would pass away._

 _My entire world seemed to crumble apart. Seeing her sick made my entire world go bleak, as if the colors had lost all of their strength. Even sunsets were lacking, now; it was like the radiance of the world was bleeding away, just as Layla's strength was._

 _She held on longer than the doctor's had thought. She was strong. But her body began to fail, after a couple years, and there was nothing that could be done._

 _You caught on, Lucy. You were just as smart as your mother was. You knew she was sick before I even had the chance to tell you about it. I sat you down, ready to give you an important talk, because Layla was fading rather quickly and couldn't bear to stand for too long anymore. But you already knew. You asked me what was wrong with mommy, why she didn't want to go to the secret spot anymore. You asked if mommy would get better._

 _And it broke my hear to tell you that she wouldn't._

 _Her body gave up before her mind did. She couldn't walk, and then she couldn't get out of bed. After a while, she couldn't sit up in bed anymore. I'd put the business totally on pause, dedicating all of my time to Layla. I didn't want her to ever be alone, not even for a second._

 _She started to lose her memories, her entire life force being sapped away by the disease. But she never forgot you, Lucy. Never._

 _The day she died, she lost her eyesight. She told me she couldn't see anymore, couldn't see out the window, but that the colors were dancing. Even without her eyes, her heart had the ability to see the colors you had gifted her with._

 _I watched as the life slipped out of her body, as my beautiful Layla passed away. I watched as you held her hand, as you squeezed her hand as she left. And I felt my heart break when every color melted away, washing away like leftover paint, leaving behind only bleak tones of grey and black and white._

 _Layla had given me so much, and I'm forever thankful that I bumped into her that day so long ago. She'd brightened my life and she'd showed me how to care for others and she gave me everything. She taught me how to enjoy the world._

 _But after she passed, after my colors faded, I lost it somewhere. Everything she had taught me…I stuffed it far away, too afraid to touch it in fear that it would remind me of her. I stopped caring about things. I stopped enjoying life. I pushed you away._

 _I'm sorry for how I've treated you all of these years, my girl. You were the one bit of sunshine left in my life and I hid you away so I could sit in the darkness. I've hurt you, and I'm so sorry. I should never have treated you the way I have._

 _It's taken me too long to figure out how horrible I've been. I'm sorry for neglecting you, for leaving you behind, for ignoring you for so long you decided to leave. I'm sorry for forcing my way back into your world, for interrupting your happiness, for demanding you to return to the estate, for even considering arranging a marriage for you._

 _The second I told you about that, about the marriage, it was like everything around me came to a screeching halt. Your eyes…they look so similar to Layla's, they always have. So seeing that much hurt in them, that much pain and sadness…it killed me._

 _This letter is a new beginning. I won't be selfish anymore. This is the last time you will hear from me—I won't interrupt your happiness anymore. I'm glad you've found your place in the world. I'm glad that you've found some true friends._

 _And I'm so glad that you've found true love—I don't need to see color to know that look in your eyes. I wish we were on good terms so that I could hear you talk about your soulmate, whoever that may be._

 _I know you don't owe me anything, but please—do me a huge favor. Your soulmate…don't let the moments with him slip away unappreciated. Don't run away from love, don't be afraid to open yourself up. Cherish every second with him. Love him with your arms wide open. Because one day, when you lose him, your colors will fade and your memories will be the only thing you've got left. Hold on to them and don't let them go._

 _I love you, Lucy. I always have and I always will. I'm sorry for everything._

 _Goodbye._

 _Love,_

 _Dad_

* * *

Lucy blinked, tears trailing down her cheeks as she set the paper down. She forced herself to take deep, calm breaths as her mind ran over everything she'd just read. Every word her father had just written her seemed heartfelt, genuine; there was no hesitation about believing him in her mind.

Her father loved her. That was all she'd needed to know.

Lucy looked up, her eyes locking on to Natsu, tears still streaming down her cheeks. Maybe it was the happiness of finally understanding _why_ her father behaved the way he had, or maybe it was the shock of her father somehow knowing Lucy had the ability to see colors, but when she looked at Natsu, everything seemed a little bit brighter. Colors were richer.

Maybe her father was right. Maybe she couldn't run away anymore. She couldn't hide from herself, hide from her feelings, hide the fact that deep inside of her soul, she knew exactly why she'd gained the ability to see colors.

That first morning she'd first caught a glimpse of a color…it was the night after she'd met Natsu. She'd been shocked and confused. She'd done research, tried to understand why her color vision wasn't exploding into view like everyone else's. But now, it all made perfect sense.

She was afraid to find love. She feared loving someone and being hurt, just like what had happened with her father all of these years. So, subconsciously, she'd hesitated. She was confused and curious and interested, but she wasn't all in when it came to true love. Because, after all, true love didn't guarantee success—look at Juvia and Gray, and Erza and Jellal. Look at her father. You could experience true love and be broken by it.

But her father was right. You couldn't give in to the fear. You couldn't hide from love forever. She had to open her arms and embrace love, no hesitation, no restrictions.

All those days of confusion when another color was added to her vision, they all began to make sense—love was slowly breaking down her walls, slowly opening her up. But this was the last step, the opening of the flood gates. She had to give herself over completely.

And looking at Natsu, tears streaming down her cheeks and dripping off of her chin, Lucy finally did. She caved in to love, letting go of every fear that had plagued her thus far.

To Lucy's surprise, the colors surrounding her grew a million times more vibrant. It was almost as if she'd been looking at the colors through sunglasses the entire time; now, she'd taken them off and everything was so rich and bright that her heart nearly stopped in her chest.

And even more surprisingly, Natsu's hair began to glitch out again, even more than usual. It was like when you turn an old TV onto the wrong channel—everything was blinking and twitching, glitching out. But suddenly…it stopped. There was no more flickering, no more confusion, no more strangeness.

Instantly, Lucy knew what she was looking at. The missing link in her technicolor vision, the one gap left in her world.

Pink. Natsu's hair was pink.


	26. Pink

She sort of felt like she was on fire.

Lucy's brown eyes landed on Natsu, tracing every inch of him. She ran her eyes over every bit of him she could see: his soft, pink hair that stood up in spikes; his tanned skin; the gentle cascade of his nose; his elbow, resting gently on the table. She wasn't sure how it made any sense, but she loved every bit of him. The sight of his elbow made her heart squeeze.

Her insides burnt, like her veins were filling with lava. But…it felt good. A nice, deep, gut-charring burn, one that reminded her how alive she was. And she knew why she burnt, why her veins were on fire.

Because she was in love.

Everything was bright—the brightest she'd ever seen it. The inside of her apartment had never looked so beautiful. Every single detail, even the most mundane, was electrifying. The gentle yellow of the walls, the mixture of golden tones in the brown flooring, the specks of blue among her grey couch…it was all breathtaking. Every color was so rich, so completely _full_ that she could hardly believe it.

He'd done this. One look at him was all it had taken. One moment of realization, one glance at Natsu, and _boom_. The world was different. Colors were different. The air felt lighter. Gravity had shifted, and now he was the centre of everything. It was almost like the colors in the world were stronger around his presence. Like he was the sun, casting light upon the world.

Lucy swallowed, staring at him.

How had she not seen this before? How had she let herself go so long without realizing? Right here, right now, it seemed so simple. So easy. _Of course she loved him_. He had found her, so long ago, and brought her to the guild. He'd stood up for her, protected her, kept her safe and warm when it was all she'd needed. How had she been so blind?

Of course, Lucy knew why she'd been so blind—fear. She'd been afraid. She'd been hurt too many times in the past to open up easily. But her father had eased her worries, told her to go forward despite the fear.

And she had.

The fear hadn't dissipated upon her realization. In fact, the fear—the fear of losing love, of being hurt—had grown. Because now, now that she'd opened herself up to the truth, the fear was a possibility. For so long, this fear of being left alone hadn't ever been a real threat—she'd never allowed herself up open up enough for it to ever be true. But with one blink, with one second of admitting to herself that she loved Natsu, that he was her soul mate—well, the fear had grown exponentially.

This boy could hurt her. He could love her and leave her. He could never love her back to begin with. And now, knowing full well what finding your soul mate was like…well, Lucy knew it would kill her. The idea of being rejected, of not having your soul mate love you back…it would crush her in an instant. She didn't think she would survive it.

How had the others handled their pain so well? How had Erza recovered from being left behind by her soul mate? How had Gray managed to continue breathing, experiencing Juvia's rejection like he had?

Lucy blinked, her eyes getting wet. It had been exactly 2.5 second since she'd realized Natsu was her soul mate, and it was already overwhelmingly exhilarating. She was somehow extremely hyped up and utterly calm all at once. Like a mixture of sky-diving and curling up in front of a fireplace combined.

2.5 seconds of finding her soul mate, and she was on the verge of tears.

And then, he spoke.

Natsu's head tilted, his eyebrows scrunching in worry. "You alright?" He asked, unsure what to think about the weird look on Lucy's face. He'd seen her make weird faces before, but this one took the cake. He couldn't tell what she was thinking.

His voice was like a shotgun to her heart. Instantly, she let out a little gasp, shocked by how beautiful he sounded. She'd been listening to him speak practically nonstop for months—but now, upon realizing he was her soul mate, his voice had knocked the wind out of her. Lucy blinked, trying to compose herself. "Um," She mumbled, clearing her throat. "Yep. Yup. All good."

Natsu leaned forward, his big hand resting on hers. "Luce, are you sure?" He glanced around the room, searching for Gray to get a second opinion—but the other boy was gone. He must've slipped out in the past minute or so. Natsu frowned.

His touch sent chills up her spine. The spots where Natsu's fingers traced across Lucy's burnt, as if he'd touched a raw flame to her flesh. The moment he touched her, the world seemed to burn brighter.

She'd dreamed of finding her soul mate for years. She'd fallen asleep at night as a child, trying to imagine what her prince charming would look like. Would he be tall? Would he have a deep voice? What would he dress like? But now, sitting across from the man that had stolen her heart and lit up her world, she realized that wasn't the point.

It didn't matter what he looked like. Appearances…they meant nothing. It was Natsu's heart, his soul, that had given her the ability to see color. She'd just needed some time to let him in.

Right there, sitting in her apartment, his hand on hers, she could see a future with him. She could see them dating, falling in love, moving in together; she could see him proposing, them getting married, having children, growing old. Most importantly, she could see how he would make her feel. She could see herself excited every day, jittery to hurry home to see Natsu.

Because Natsu was _home_. She'd known that right from the start. She belonged with him.

"I have to ask you something," Lucy spoke. The emotions overwhelming her were apparent in her voice; the words came out as a shaky whisper. "Something important."

Natsu's eyes watched Lucy carefully. "Okay. Anything."

Lucy let out a little breath, eyes dropping to the table nervously. It took her a second to muster the courage; when she finally spoke, her eyes met his once again. "Do you believe in soul mates?"

Natsu's eyes stayed on Lucy, searching her expression for a signal, a symbol, _anything_ —anything to figure out why she was asking this. But when her gaze lingered, unchanging, his expression crumbled into something…breakable. Everything about him seemed vulnerable. "Yeah—of course."

Lucy swallowed, her throat feeling heavy. The look on his face, the change in his expression—it could only mean one thing. That glimpse of fear she'd caught in his eyes…it reflected her own. Maybe, just maybe…Natsu was afraid because he'd found his soul mate too.

Lucy's heart practically stopped beating. If Natsu had found his soul mate…what were the chances it was her? On the other hand, what were the chances it was someone else?

She had to press on. She had to ask more. She needed to know if he'd found his soul mate.

"What made you believe in them?" Lucy asked, voice barely audible.

His voice was quieter than usual. He looked down at his hand, still resting on top of hers. "Igneel told me I'd find someone one day, but I never really took it seriously." His jaw flexed.

"Do you take it seriously now?"

His eyes flickered up to meet Lucy's but flashed back down to their hands just as quickly. He began to trace his thumb across the back of her hand, appearing a little nervous. "Yes."

Lucy's eyes dropped to the table, her heart beating. "Natsu…" She whispered, voice cracking more than she would've liked it to, "Have you…Have you found your soulmate?"

There was a long silence. Each second that slipped by without any words spoken increased Lucy's heart rate. It was too long without an answer—he clearly hadn't found his soul mate. She'd asked all of these stupid questions for nothing. She was an idiot—what was she thinking? She could feel her heart ache with sadness, only a tiny echo of what would come when he confirmed her fears.

But he didn't confirm her fears. He never got the chance to.

The door of Lucy's apartment busted open, and the once-quiet room was now bursting with life.

Lucy frowned. "Happy? What's wrong?"

"Natsu!" Happy cried, flying into the apartment, a worried look on his face. "Natsu—it's Gray! He's in a huge fight with some guys—we need your help!"

Natsu's head snapped up, confusion on his face. "What happened?"

Carla came flying in after Happy, an even more worried expression twisting at her features. "It's Juvia—"

"It doesn't matter!" Happy spat, flying to Natsu and tugging at his sleeve, trying to get him to stand. "If you don't come help, Gray's gonna die!"

"Okay," Natsu nodded. But before he stood, he turned back to Lucy. His eyes caught hers, the emotion behind them confusing and unreadable. Natsu opened his mouth, as if he were going to say something, but quickly changed his mind. Before he stood and dashed out of the door, Natsu squeezed Lucy's hand. "Let's go."

Happy fluttered out after Natsu, quickly trying to explain whatever had happened. Lucy was far too shocked to stand; she sat there, staring at the doorway, unsure of what to think about what had just happened. That look he'd given her, that squeeze of her hand…what had it meant?

Was it him promising to continue the conversation? Was it him trying to tell her that _she_ was _his_ soulmate? Or was it something else, something Lucy could hardly bear to consider—was it an apology, a simple way of acknowledging that he hadn't found his soulmate? Or perhaps his attempt at telling her that he _had_ found his soulmate, but it was someone else?

There were too many possibilities, and almost all of them would break Lucy's heart.

"My god, child!" Carla cried, tugging at Lucy's arm. "Stand up! We've got to go help!"

Lucy swallowed. Her heart was on the verge of breaking, but her friends needed her. She had to be strong, just for now. "Right," Lucy said with a nod. "What's going on?"

Carla explained as the pair dashed out of the apartment.

"There's an altercation—Wendy, Happy and I were with Juvia, keeping her company today. We were at the park when these men started calling out to us—well, out to Juvia. They wouldn't leave her alone. They kept harassing her, saying awful things to her."

Lucy frowned, peering up at the exceed as they ran. "Awful things?"

Carla sighed. "They were hitting on her…rather awfully."

"Ah," Lucy replied with a nod. She'd been catcalled many times in her life—some men could say some disgusting things. "I see. Then what?"

"Well, the men wouldn't leave Juvia alone, and she tried to stand up for herself—but they got closer and closer. One of them touched her."

"He _what_?" Lucy spat, anger biting at her tongue. The nerve of some people, daring to touch her friend without permission…

"Before anyone could do anything, the guy was stuck in a block of ice." Carla carried on, her voice shaky from the incident. "Gray showed up out of nowhere and just _lost it_. He started fighting all of the men—but there were so many of them. We knew we had to get help. I told Wendy to go to the guild hall and get assistance—if she didn't, she'd try to fight and just get hurt."

Lucy nodded. "That was smart of you, Carla."

"Happy and I flew as fast as we could to your place. Thank god you and Natsu were there."

Lucy ran as fast as she could, blonde hair whipping her cheeks; she ran directly to the park, following Carla's directions in the hopes that they'd get there as fast as possible.

By the time they arrived, the fight was only getting bigger.

Turns out that the group of catcallers belonged to a nearby guild; they'd called in for backup as well. Lucy and Carla ran up to a rather horrific looking battle—at least thirty men standing off to Natsu and Gray. The two boys worked well together, proof that they'd sparred often throughout their youth; Natsu's flames perfectly complimented Gray's ice. The fight was a struggle due to the sheer mass of opponents, but the boys were doing well.

Lucy ran as close as she could without getting involved in the fight. "Do you need help?" She cried, a hand on her keys dangling from her hip.

Natsu responded in between punching two men, his fists exploding with flames. "No—try to find Juvia! She took off and some dudes followed her."

Lucy nodded. "Gotcha!"

Happy fluttered down to where Lucy and Carla stood. "I think she went this way!" He cried, pointing towards a path that cut through the forest.

"Let's go!" Lucy shouted, taking off down the path.

Before losing sight, she glanced back at Natsu. He was fighting, his flames glowing red-hot, a grin on his face. Just as she peered back at him, he craned his neck to take a quick glance in her direction. When he realized she was looking back at him, he flashed her a wide grin.

Lucy instantly blushed, shaking her head and smiling; she turned, running down the path, trying to focus on finding Juvia.

It didn't take long to find Juvia and the creeps that had chased her. The path leading into the forest was a dead-end; it lead to a small opening within the forest and stopped dead in its tracks. By the time Lucy, Happy and Carla had arrived, Juvia was already in a standoff with the men, being backed into the clearing as they approached.

"Get away from her!" Lucy cried as they neared the clearing.

Juvia's face lit up. "Lucy!"

There were three men; they seemed annoyed that more people had arrived.

"Get out of here," One of the men grumbled, turning his attention back to Juvia. "This ain't your business."

"Like _hell_ it's not my business," Lucy spat back. She reached down and grabbed a key, making eye contact with Juvia as she did so. Juvia gave her a nod.

Juvia lifted her hands. "Water slicer!"

A whip made of water formed in Juvia's hands; she slashed it at the men, who stumbled back further towards Lucy and the exceeds.

Quickly, Juvia called out another spell. "Water dome!"

A large dome of water formed over the men. Confused, they began to swim toward the edge of dome, trying to escape. But before they could, Lucy sprung into action.

"Open gate of the water bearer!" She turned the key. "Aquarius!"

Aquarius appeared, floating in the dome with the men. She rolled her eyes, annoyed by Lucy's presence as per usual.

"Aquarius," Lucy called. "These guys tried to hurt Juvia—they need to be dealt with."

Aquarius set her sights on the men, who began to swim away in fear. A smile smirk grew on her lips. "Nice try boys," She murmured, lifting her basin. "But you're not getting away with this."

With one swift motion, Aquarius sent multiple water whiplash attacks; each wave hit the men, knocking them senseless. Aquarius sent another wave of attacks, not easing up on the men once. After multiple attacks, the men blacked out, still floating in the water dome. Aquarius smiled, gave a wave to Juvia, and headed back to the celestial plane.

Juvia washed away the water dome, letting the men fall to the ground in the clearing. They began to cough up water, gasping for air.

Lucy walked over to Juvia, giving her a hug. "Are you okay?"

"I am now," Juvia murmured, nodding at Lucy. "Thanks for coming. I was just so scared, I completely froze."

"That's okay," Carla said, shaking her head. "I can't imagine how scary that must have been. These men…they're awful."

Happy fluttered to the ground, a little frown crossing his features. He took of his little knapsack, dropping it to the ground; he balled his little paws into fists. He walked up to the men, shaking his head. "You should be nice to girls," He grumbled, before kicking one of them men in the head with all of his might.

Juvia and Lucy laughed, proud of Happy's mighty bravery.

"You sure you're okay?" Lucy asked, searching Juvia's face for any signs of concern.

"A little shaken up, but I'll be okay." She blinked, hesitating for a moment; after a long second, she spoke. "It was…Gray. Gray saved me. That man who touched me—he froze him solid."

Lucy smiled, completely understanding the look on Juvia's face.

It was what love looked like.

"So I heard," Lucy said, trying to contain the smile working its way onto her lips. "I wonder how he knew you were in trouble."

Juvia shook her head. "I don't know…"

Happy spoke, now stomping on one of the unconscious men's heads. "He must really love you."

Juvia smiled softly. "Yeah," She murmured. "I guess he must."

Happy padded back to the group. "I hope Natsu's doing okay."

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Carla replied. "Those two seemed to be enjoying the fight."

Lucy smiled, remembering the grin Natsu had flashed at her before she'd left. "You guys wanna head back to the guild? We can wait for the boys there."

"Sure," Juvia nodded, cheeks a bit more flushed than usual. She seemed like she was stuck in a daydream. The idea of Gray coming to her rescue probably had her flustered. "I could use some tea to calm me down."

"Let's go, then," Lucy said, headed back towards the path. "Oh—Happy, you almost forgot your bag."

Lucy reached down, grabbing Happy's green rucksack as she walked by. The top of it was unclasped—it must've unclipped when he'd dropped it to the ground—and a piece of paper fluttered out, landing on the ground.

Lucy frowned, picking the piece of paper up. She unfolded it, making a face. "What's thi—" She began, but her sentence was cut short once she realized what she was holding.

The paper was a page from a large book. The edge was ripped, probably from when someone roughly tore the piece out of the book. Lucy ran her eyes over the paper, confusion clouding her brain.

It was the page she'd been looking for, the missing page from the book about colors.

Lucy swallowed.

It was the page describing the color pink.


	27. Going To Be Brave

Lucy's throat was tight, her hand still tightly gripping the thick paper, mind racing. She didn't know what to think, how to even begin approaching the subject of _the pink page_ in her mind. She didn't know what to make of Happy having had the paper this entire time. Of course, a small part of her wanted to believe he was holding it for another person…but she couldn't be sure, and she didn't want to set herself up for major disappointment.

They were at the guild hall, sitting at one of the large wooden tables. They'd come back, expecting the boys to be a few minutes behind them, but over an hour had passed and neither Gray nor Natsu had busted through the doors. Lucy would've been worried, but her mind was far too plagued by thoughts about the pink page.

Everyone in the guild was fretting over Juvia. The second they'd walked in the doors, everyone's attention had turned to the water mage. Juvia was emotional; the guild probably thought it was the trauma of the men trying to attack her, but Lucy knew better. It wasn't being stalked, it wasn't being in danger…Juvia was crying because of Gray.

Lucy could understand it, now. She knew what this love felt like, how compelling it was. She knew the emotions it could pull from your soul. And she knew exactly what Juvia was thinking.

Juvia had fought true love for so long— _too long_. She'd rejected her true love and ignored her soul mate because she wanted to stand up for herself. She wanted to prove to the world—and to Gray—that she deserved better than what he'd been giving her. And she'd been right. Seeing him had been torture, but she'd known in the depths of her soul that what she was doing was _right_. He couldn't expect her to love him, to give in, after months of hurt and pain. He couldn't. And so, she'd fought it.

But now, things were different.

He'd sensed she was in danger and he'd come for her. He'd seen the enemy and dove in without another thought. Because Juvia was his soulmate, and he would protect her with everything he had. He'd bleed dry for her if he had to.

He'd ignored her feelings for months, treated her like dirt. And when he'd fallen in love with her, he held himself back—for her sake. That was how he proved his love, by giving her what she wanted—space. But this time, he couldn't help himself.

Gray dove in, gave his safety up for her. Gave everything up for her, in an instant. Because he loved her.

That one selfless act…it changed everything. It was an act of love, one that Juvia couldn't fight. By saving her, he'd given his heart up to her—and she couldn't reject it any longer. She knew that. And that's why she was crying—quiet tears of happiness, tears of finally accepting true love.

Juvia cried quietly to herself, not saying a word while the guild consoled her, thinking she was upset. But Lucy knew better. She patted Juvia's back, silently encouraging the water mage to dive in head-first into love.

Juvia waited, keeping one teary eye on the door. She would wait for him to find her, and then go to him. And this time, she wouldn't hold back. She wouldn't restrain herself. She would let go, completely.

Lucy was waiting, too—but she wasn't sure what for. She felt antsy; having unanswered questions made her stomach tie up in knots. She wanted to scream out, ask the universe why things were going the way they were. Why did Happy steal the pink page? Why had he hid it this entire time? Where was Natsu, and why was he taking so long? So many questions, so little answers. Her chest hurt.

She stood, impatient, and made her way over to the bar. She asked Lisanna for a shot—she wasn't a drinker by any means, but desperate times called for desperate measures—hoping that maybe a little alcohol would give her the clarity she needed. Lucy set the pink page on the counter, glaring down at it momentarily. Lisanna nodded, returning a few seconds later with a shot glass and a bottle of whiskey.

"I'll leave the bottle." Lisanna murmured, dancing off to tend to other patrons.

Lucy let out a huff of a breath, taking the bottle and splashing the liquor into the small glass. Something felt heavy in her heart, like a lingering weight. The confusion of the pink page was a major factor, but Lucy knew it was something more than that bogging her down. In fact, Lucy knew _exactly_ what was getting to her.

She was jealous.

Watching Juvia accept her love, knowing that Gray and Juvia would be together, completely in true, absolute love…it made Lucy's heart spasm with jealousy. Because the second the boys walked through those doors, Gray and Juvia would be forever—and Lucy would still be Lucy, alone, wondering if the boy who'd stolen her heart would ever love her in return.

Lucy knocked back the shot, squeezing her eyes together as her throat burnt. She loaded up another shot, sighing down heavily at it.

Would Natsu ever love her?

"Sheesh, Lucy!" A little voice laughed, a tiny blue body floating over to sit beside the blonde. "I've never seen you have a drink before supper before!"

Lucy swallowed, already a little lightheaded from that last shot—she was always such a lightweight. "Yeah, well, I've never had this many problems before supper before."

Happy frowned up at the girl. "What's wrong?"

She downed the shot, pausing for a moment to let the burn subside before she replied to the exceed. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Did you kill someone or something?"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "No."

"Oh, well, what could it—" Happy begin, but very swiftly cut off his sentence. His eyes were locked onto the countertop, staring at the thick page resting beside Lucy's elbow. The exceed's eyes went wide, and he swallowed. "Where'd you find that?"

Lucy glanced at the paper. "It fell out of your bag at the meadow."

"Oh!" Happy exclaimed, appearing a little nervous. "Thanks for picking it up for me."

"Sure," Lucy murmured, handing him the page. She didn't really mind parting with it—she'd already read it several times over. Besides, she could see the entire world in color now, no blank spots—she didn't particularly need information on the colors anymore. They were everywhere she went. "Hey—Happy?"

"Hm?" The cat responded, gently folding the paper and putting it back in his bag.

"Why do you have that page?"

He hesitated, almost like he wasn't sure how to respond. "I—um, well—" He paused, swallowing. "I stole it."

Lucy felt her heart drop. So, there was the answer she was looking for. It wasn't Natsu who had taken it after all—Happy had. She tried to hide the disappointment on her face. "Why'd you steal it?"

"Oh, well…" He trailed off. "I could see this color, and I wanted to read up on it."

Lucy's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "You can see color?"

Happy made a face. "Uh—yep."

Even more disappointment flooded through her veins. Any hope she had about this all being linked to Natsu was fading quickly. "Well, it's a nice color," Lucy muttered, pouring herself another shot. "Congrats."

"Yup, yup—I'm a lucky guy, what can I say?" Happy replied, voice getting higher pitched the more he spoke. His words began to tumble out quickly as he tucked the paper in his bag and snapped the latch shut, making sure the paper wouldn't tumble out again. "Pink is my color. You know—gotta love that color. Pink. It's a good one. Nice and dark and pink. Yup. My favorite. Welp, gotta go now. See you later." The cat turned, appearing in quite the rush to escape Lucy's company.

Lucy frowned. "Wait a second!" She exclaimed.

Happy froze, foot in the air. He cringed. "Yes?"

"Did you just say pink was _dark_?"

Happy made a face. "Dark…in a light kind of way?"

Lucy frowned. " _Happy_. You're lying to me, aren't you?"

The exceed gulped. "Not…really?"

Lucy crossed her arms. "Happy."

"Gah! Okay! You broke me!" He cried, letting his little blue arms drop. He let out a sigh. "I _did_ steal the page—but only because Natsu told me to! And then I brought it home and we read it, but he made me _promise_ to keep it hidden in my bag and to never, _ever_ let anyone see it!"

Lucy's heart stopped. "Natsu told you to steal it?"

Happy let his head drop. "He's gonna kill me when he finds out you know about it."

"Why'd he make you steal it?"

"I don't know! He said it was a secret."

"A secret even _you_ can't know?"

Happy sighed. "He said it was a life or death situation."

Lucy felt dizzy. Was there a chance…he asked Happy to steal and hide the paper because he could see colors? And maybe, _just maybe_ …it was because of Lucy?

Lucy shook her head, closing her eyes for a split second. She couldn't let her hopes get too high—she couldn't bear the disappointment if she was wrong. She needed more information, more details before she even let herself consider Natsu loving her a possibility.

"And he didn't want anyone to know he had it?"

"Nope," Happy said, shaking his head. "He said if I told anyone he would skin me." He paused a split second then murmured, "Especially you. He said he would set me on fire if you ever found out."

"Why me?"

Happy shrugged. "I always figured it was because you'd tease him the most."

"Right," Lucy replied softly, her mind absolutely racing. Her heart was pounding against her ribs, making her dizzy. "Did he say anything else about the page?"

"No," Happy replied, fiddling with his paws. "Took him three days just to read the one page, though. He was very thorough. I don't really know why—it's kinda boring."

"Did he ever ask for any other pages?" Lucy questioned.

"He said we would have to steal more pages—but then he just dropped it. He never mentioned any more colors after that."

Lucy frowned. "Weird."

Happy made a face. "You can't tell him I told you, okay? I'm too young to be skinned!"

"Oh, relax," Lucy rolled her eyes. "He won't skin you."

"You haven't seen how much of a spaz he is." Happy hopped down from the bar stool. "I'm gonna go find Carla—look, if you tell him you know, just try to lower my death sentence."

"Will do."

Lucy turned back to the bar, throat tight. She ran her eyes over the bar counter, looking at the various glimpses and flickers of color in the marble, trying to make sense of everything. Natsu wanted the pink page, not Happy. Natsu read the page, and it took him days to finish. Natsu was interested in _color_.

Did this mean he could see color? Not necessarily. But it was a strong suggestion he could. He was researching—just like Lucy had when she'd first gained the ability. But the only difference between the two was that Lucy kept researching each color, while Natsu suddenly stopped after the first color.

Did he lose his vision after pink? Had he fallen out of love so soon?

Or was he ever in love to begin with?

Lucy's heart couldn't bear the unknowns—she wanted to run out of the guild, hunt down the boy and question him face-to-face. She needed _answers_. She had to know why he did the things he did. She had to know if it was because of her.

If it wasn't, it would kill her. But not knowing was almost as torturous.

Lucy shoved herself away from the barstool, her mind made up. She would find him and she would confess everything, get it all out in the open. And he'd either say the same thing, or reject her. He'd either make everything perfect or destroy her. But she had to know.

Lucy walked with determined steps toward the guild doors, love flushing through her veins.

But before she could get to the doors, they swung open. Lucy froze, realizing that there were only two members of the guild not currently present—Gray and Natsu. That would be them, making their way inside. Gray would look for Juvia, and Natsu…well, he'd probably look for her.

Gray stepped through the doorway, all eyes on him—except for Lucy's. She waited, holding her breath, biting her lip, longing for that pink hair to walk through the door.

Except he didn't.

Gray walked in, and the door shut behind him, the setting sun slammed out of view.

Lucy's heart dropped.

Gray took two steps into the guild, his gaze quickly flickering from Juvia to the floor. He looked…apologetic. Guilty, almost. In his mind, his stepping in was crossing a clear boundary that Juvia had created. She'd wanted space and he'd destroyed that. She wanted nothing to do with him, and he'd went and saved her. He thought the guild would be mad. He thought they'd shout at him. He thought Juvia would look at him with pain in her eyes, like she had been for the past year.

But none of that happened.

When Gray looked up, Juvia was walking towards him. Her eyes were wet and she looked upset and he braced himself, turning his head away slightly and closing his eyes, expecting her to yell at him or something. But instead, he felt the warmth of her body against his, her head nuzzling into his neck; her arms wrapped around him and hugged him tightly. Every spot that she touched him instantly became warm, like she was the sun kissing his skin. He opened his eyes, surprised.

"Thank you," Juvia whispered. "For everything."

Gray swallowed, his throat too thick to speak. His heart had been battered for months, ever since the night she'd rejected him. Every second without her had stung like an open wound. Every time he'd looked at her it had been like a stab in his chest. But now, with her here, hugging him and talking to him…none of that pain ever existed. It was gone instantly.

His eyes got wet and he hung his head, letting it fall against her neck; he nuzzled his head into the crook of her neck and her shoulder, the sudden wetness from his eyes falling against her skin. His big hands wrapped around the small of her waist, pulling her tightly against him.

Gray finally spoke, voice rough and just low enough for Juvia to hear. "I love you."

Juvia leaned back, looking into his eyes, every color the brightest it had ever been. "I love you, too."

They kissed, and the guild went wild. Everyone shouted, cheering, thanking the gods that these two finally made up. People were hugging, Mira was crying, Happy flew around in circles in the sky. Because finally, _finally_ , love had persisted. Through the pain and the tears, love had continued. And now, Gray and Juvia were forever.

Lucy wanted to be happy for them. She wanted to hug them both and congratulate them on finding love and making it through the pain. She wanted to cry and cheer with the rest of the guild—but she couldn't. Because Gray had come back for Juvia, but Natsu hadn't come back at all.

Her heart felt like it was breaking in two. For a split second, Lucy considered staying at the guild and celebrating, but she knew she wouldn't be able to. She couldn't go on for another hour without asking Natsu the truth. With a heavy heart, Lucy decided to find the boy she loved and confess her feelings to him. She had a feeling his answer would break her heart, break her forever, but she had to tell him. She couldn't continue on not knowing.

Lucy waded through the crowd—everyone had gathered around Juvia and Gray now and was hugging and cheering with them—until she got towards the happy couple. People bumped into Lucy, making her stumble her way through the crowd.

Gray looked at her, his hand around Juvia's waist, looking the happiest Lucy had ever seen him, But when he saw Lucy's somber expression, he frowned slightly.

Lucy shouted, trying to make her voice carry over the crowd. "Where is he?" She asked.

Gray seemed to understand what Lucy was going to do; he understood the painful expression washing over her features. He didn't need to ask any questions. "I don't know," Gray shouted back, voice barely audible over the crowd. "He said he needed some time alone—he took off towards the park."

Lucy nodded, unable to manage even a brief smile for her happy friends. She turned and bumped her way through the crowd, headed back towards the guild doors.

The sun had set and the town was cloaked in darkness. The soft glow from the streetlights lit Lucy's path as she made her way towards the park; a gentle, warm breeze washed across her cheeks. The stars were just beginning to peek out from the sky; the moon was high in the sky, lighting up the world below.

She got to the park and began to walk aimlessly, not sure which direction to head. She stepped off of the path and headed towards the open fields, mind too distracted by the dull ache in her heart. Even here, in the absolute darkness, she could see color. The sky was dark, but hints of navy blue screamed out at her; the stars winked golden hues down at her. The colors were so beautiful, all because she loved him.

Lucy walked for what felt like an hour. But she didn't mind, honestly; as much as she was desperate to find Natsu, this time alone felt good. The starry sky gave her the space to think, to contemplate the possible broken heart she would most likely end up with. It was a good mental preparation for what was to come.

And then, she'd found him. He was laying in the grass in the middle of an enormous field, staring up at the stars.

Lucy's heart surged.

She was going to be brave.


	28. Giving In

Natsu looked up at the stars, watched as the breeze carried soft grey clouds through the night sky. He watched as the stars flickered, as the moon began to light up the night. He tried to take deep breaths, tried to keep his heart rate at a decent pace. He tried to keep his mind on track, tried to gather up the courage he needed.

At first, this had been easy. These thoughts that were now plaguing him…initially, it wasn't so bad. It had hit him like a bag of bricks, but it hadn't been so bad. It was clear and it was simple and he _knew_ , but he pushed it away. He ignored it. He'd continued on, praying to god that the thought didn't come back again, because it would make a real mess of things and that was the last thing he'd ever wanted. He pushed it away and he hoped that was the last of it.

But it wasn't.

The thought came back. The thought lingered in his brain. He'd find himself thinking the thought without realizing it. He would actively try not to think about it, which in turn only made him think about it more. This thought was a disease, spreading through his body like a sickness. It grew, manifested in his soul. He ignored it more, pushed it to the back of his mind. Because he couldn't address it, couldn't acknowledge it. Acknowledging it would make it real, and once it was real he'd have to deal with it. And he couldn't deal with it. Not now, not ever.

One moment, it was a thought, and the next, it was color.

He couldn't ignore that as much as he could ignore the thought, but he sure as hell tried. But how do you ignore a bright spot in a world of black and white? He put his head down and carried on, still shoving that thought away.

But it only got worse.

That damn color haunted him. He'd see it in bits and pieces of his life. He'd see it in the mirror. He'd see it on her hand, and he'd feel it in his chest, and he'd feel it pummel him with every step he took.

In a moment of weakness, he read that fucking book about that color. And it was the universe whispering to him, begging him to let it happen—but he continued to deny it. He left the book behind, tried to pretend he didn't give a shit. The second he stepped out of that library, the pain hit him. It was like he'd been hit by a train and set on fire all at once; it was the worst pain he'd ever felt. The pain drew him to the book, drew him to the page, drew him to that color that was on her hand. And as much as he fought it and gritted his teeth, the pain was too much. He told Happy to take that page, and the pain lessened. It was bearable, now.

Natsu read the page over and over, every night, for hours. But still, every morning he would shove that page away and hide it—just as he hid the thought. Because he couldn't do anything else. And the pain would return.

The thought returned, but this time with a vengeance. The more he ignored it, the more angry the thought became. Hour by hour, it was there. Louder, now. Bolder, now. It screamed at him from inside, screamed and begged for him to listen, but he didn't. It took more and more of his time and effort to ignore it, but ignore it he did. The thought begged, pleaded…but he didn't care. Natsu ignored it, hid behind his fears and pretended not to hear his heart screaming at him.

It returned with more strength, more guts. It returned like a fire, ready to blaze down its path. This time, it didn't just bother his mind—it was a physical manifestation, now. He'd ignored it for too long, and this was the consequence. That little thought…it scorched his insides like a forest fire. It burnt him all day, everyday—but night was always the worst. He'd bite his pillow as his flesh ached, as his organs burnt. He'd try not to cry as he felt his insides turn to ash. Still, he tried to ignore it.

And once the pain became too great to bear, once he could no longer ignore it, he tried to make sense of it. Because it made no sense and he had to understand. He read books, he did research, but there was nothing. Nothing about pain, not like this. He thought maybe he was dying, or something.

Every day he fell more. She would laugh and a color would come into view. She would touch his hand and the grass was suddenly green. It didn't take long for him to see nearly every single color.

He knew he was in trouble. He knew what was happening. But the fear was too much—he wasn't ready.

But the colors only got brighter. And the brighter the colors got, the more he shoved that little thought away—which made the pain worse. He began to piece it together, but didn't have the heart to admit it to himself. He couldn't. He kept ignoring it, because he wasn't brave enough to do anything else.

It began to hurt more. Each step he'd take would be like knives on his feet. It hadn't been long, but already he knew what was happening. And still, he couldn't admit it. Not even silently, in his own mind. It was forbidden—it was something he'd never allow to happen. He didn't have the strength.

And then she went and said those things at the bonfire. She went and talked about fate and the universe and him. And he felt his heart crack and his soul break, and he felt like the fire in his blood heat up even further. And every bit of fear he had—it grew. Because he could love this girl with his entire heart, and she might never feel the same. The idea horrified him. He shoved love away yet again.

He watched it happen with Gray and Juvia. Love not being enough. He was conflicted; the pain grew even worse in his bones. He kept pushing it away, kept running from the truth.

But then he saw Lucy, sitting on the floor of her bedroom, sobbing. He saw her heart break because of her father. He saw her sob because of love, because of pain. He saw her giving up and he felt his own body experiencing her pain; he saw her tears drip off of her chin and had to wipe away his own. And watching the girl fall apart…that's when it all made sense for him. Because he looked right into her eyes, and he saw the color of them—the last color he'd been missing—fade into view.

He loved her. Any fears he'd had were gone, now. He'd given in to that little thought that had been there since the first time he's locked eyes with her—he was hers. Forever.

He'd walked with Gray after they'd fought that group of men. Gray seemed to understand, seemed to know that look on Natsu's face. The look of love that you couldn't quite grasp yet. And Gray patted him on the back and muttered, "You better tell her, then."

So, he'd come here, to the middle of nowhere. He'd come to think, to come up with some way to tell it to her properly. He'd watched the stars because he didn't really know what else to do, but he knew he had to do something. He had to gather his mind, had to escape the distraction of the city and his friends. Because he had to be brave, and he needed a moment to gather as much bravery as he could. Maybe she'd love him back, or maybe she'd reject him terribly—it didn't matter, now. Because he'd be hers for as long as she wanted him, no questions asked.

He hadn't expected her to show up. She found him, though. He should've known—she always knew where to find him.

And the way she walked up to him, the way she breathed through her nose, the way her heart was pounding, he could tell she was upset with him.

She seemed like she had something to say, and she shifted her feet a little nervously before opening her mouth—but he couldn't let her. Because if she spoke, it would break him down, and he'd never be able to get all the words he wanted to say out. So he cut her off, sputtered out the words before she had a chance to say anything.

"Don't talk," Natsu muttered, pulling himself to his feet and stepping to be right in front of her. "Please—okay? Just let me say something first."

Lucy blinked, surprised. She gave him a nod, allowing him to talk.

He was lightheaded and felt like throwing up, but for the first time since he'd seen her, there was no pain, no lingering nagging in his brain. For once, he was completely free—like his body knew he was giving in after all of this time, and was allowing him to do so without any interference.

"That night—at the bonfire," He spoke, but the words came out jumbled and shaky and messy, "You said—you said it was fate that we met. And you said I was your best friend. And I never got the chance to say anything back to you because of everything that happened with Gray and Juvia, but I wanted to."

He took a soft, shaky breath. "The day that we met—on that train to Magnolia—was the best day of my life. Because I left Magnolia looking for a job to keep me busy but I ended up finding you, and you're—well—you're my best friend. And I think it is fate that we met, because I've never had someone fit so perfectly into my life like you did. And meeting you—right in the very first second I saw you—I just knew you were my best friend, already, right there. That makes no sense, but I felt it. And I'm so glad the universe gave me you, because you are the best person I've ever met."

After he sputtered out his little speech, Natsu's eyes dropped to the ground, too afraid to meet Lucy's eye; his hands were in fists. His breath was shallow, exhausted by the amount of nervousness and sheer _heart_ put into his words.

And that fear—that fear he'd been fighting the entire time, the fear that made him ignore the thought and the colors all along—god, it was screaming at him. It was flushing through him, urging him to run away, to take it back, to push the girl away because god knew he was in for a world of pain if this went wrong.

But the warmth in his chest blocked out the fear. The warmth filled his lungs, eased his mind, let that little thought that had plagued him for so long take a rest. Because, finally— _finally_ —he could admit to himself what he'd failed to for the past few months.

Natsu looked up at Lucy, that warmth in his chest igniting a fire behind his eyes. It was the same fire that she'd ignited that night when she'd told him how important he was to her—the fire that made him put the fear behind him.

There were no doubts, now. No doubts in his mind.

He'd been afraid of change. Lucy had known that—she'd said that was his greatest fear. She'd been right. He'd lost his parents, he'd lost Igneel, he'd feared losing everything. He'd feared change. He'd feared letting someone in, because he couldn't bear to have one more important person go missing from his world.

But she'd come and she'd lit up the skies and she'd made him see that damn color the first fucking night, and now it all didn't matter. Losing her…it wouldn't be as bad as never having her. It wouldn't be as bad as never letting himself have the chance to love her.

"That night…" Natsu's voice was low, but his gaze on her never wavered. "You said you loved me."

Lucy's heart felt like it was going to explode. She'd arrived expecting to be brave and question him, but he'd spilled his heart to her before she'd had the chance. And now, he was watching her with a strange flicker in his eyes, talking about her _loving_ him.

"I meant it," Lucy whispered, unable to put strength into her voice.

Natsu's expression faltered, and then crumbled. All of his composure was completely obliterated by that little sentence. It could mean nothing—maybe she loved him as a friend—but hearing the words sent the heat in his chest into a flurry. His eyebrows pulled down and his eyes flickered down to the ground and he thought for a split second that he might just burst into tears, because that's what that little thought did to him.

That little thought…it was love. True love. The thought that she was the one he'd been searching for, waiting for, all along. That she was his soulmate.

"In what way?"

Lucy shook her head, making a face. "In every way."

Natsu's expression was serious, still. "Lucy," He breathed softly, dark eyes on her. "Tell me."

Her cheeks were blazing hot, the heat trailing down her neck. "Tell you what?" She muttered, dropping her eyes in embarrassment. She knew what was he was asking of her—he was asking her to confess it, to tell him she loved him—but she didn't know if she had the courage.

Natsu's lips twisted up just barely, just a tiny hint of that cocky smirk he always flashed at her, and he murmured again, "Tell me."

Lucy's veins buzzed and she gritted her teeth and she thought about that damn page in that damn book, and she remembered why she was there. Because she was brave. She'd come here with a purpose. He'd distracted her, as per usual, but she would complete her mission. She would tell him the truth—the whole truth, for once.

Lucy looked Natsu in the eyes, letting out a huff of breath.

"I'm in love with you, Natsu."

A few seconds passed. Lucy watched as a variety of emotions flickered across his face, worked his way into his expression. His eyebrows pulled down and he pressed his lips together to hide a smile, and his cheeks went bright blazing pink. After a few seconds, Natsu dropped his head, his eyes falling to the grass below. His jaw clenched and he blinked, and a few wet tears dripped off of him and onto the ground.

"Luce…" He trailed off softly before returning with slightly more force. "Can you…can you see color?"

Lucy swallowed, trying to hold back her own tears.

"Yes."

"And it's…?"

Lucy sniffed, wetness spilling from her eyes. "Because of you."

Natsu's head slowly raised, his dark eyes working up to hers. He took a few slow steps, stepping into her body; he placed his head into the crook of her neck, the wetness from his eyes touching her skin. He closed his eyes, his shoulders slumping as he leaned into her.

Finally. After months of fighting it, he'd completely given in. The fear was gone, non-existent.

He'd overcome it.

Lucy's arms wrapped around the boy, holding him tightly. They hugged for a long few moments before Lucy leaned back. Her eyelashes were wet and her cheeks were flushed but she had a funny little expression washing over her face.

"You better say it back."

Natsu smiled down at her, that smirk taking place front and centre. "Say what back?"

Lucy smacked him, rolling her eyes. "Now is _not_ the time to mess around, Natsu."

He snorted. "Okay, okay—I love you too." He paused. "Even though you are a spaz."

"And the colors?" Lucy pressed.

His cheeks flushed slightly more, but he let out a laugh. "I can see them—because of you."

"Good," Lucy murmured to herself. "That's good." She frowned, then peered up at him. "Since when?"

"When could I see colors?" He made a face. "Saw the first color the first night you were here."

Lucy smiled to herself. "Let me guess—pink?"

"How'd you know?"

"Happy told me you made him steal the page." Lucy narrowed her eyes. "Which means you were _lying_ in your interrogation. Care to explain, Mr. Dragneel?"

Natsu stepped in quickly, his big hands grabbing her face and pulling her in towards his. "Ah, shut up," He murmured before leaning in and pressing his lips to hers.

Up until Lucy, he'd never thought much about love. It seemed like something people just _talked_ about—he'd never thought he'd experience it. He'd heard the girls in the guild whisper about what it would be like, heard stories about how life-changing it was. He'd heard that it made your life complete, that it made you happier than you thought you'd ever be.

He'd never really thought about what kissing your soulmate would be like.

But there he was, with his lips pressed against Lucy's, and somehow gravity had shifted. Everything had shifted. They were in their own bubble, and no one else existed. This space was for them, and them only. That single kiss had created their own planet, had created their own universe. Time didn't exist there. Nothing existed there. There was him and Lucy and that warmth in his chest that seemed permanent now, and that was it.

That kiss was forever in a split second.

Natsu instantly regretted every second he ever ignored that little thought, or the colors he'd been seeing. He regretted everything. He regretted every second he _wasn't_ kissing Lucy.

She pulled away, about to say something, but he pushed forwards and kept kissing her, cutting her off. Lucy giggled into the kiss, her hands reaching through and grabbing his spiky hair.

Natsu didn't mind.

Finally, he'd given in.

It was worth it.

 **A/N: heard someone wanted some of Natsu's perspective….i hope I delivered lol. Don't worry, this isn't the last chapter…not sure how many there will be (maybe one or two? Just to conclude things). I'll try to get them up soon, not make you wait another seven months lol. Thanks for being such loyal readers! UR DA BEST**


	29. Trifecta

Lucy chewed on the inside of her cheek nervously, her eyes wandering over the colorful scenery surrounding them. The colors had gotten brighter since she'd found out—now that her and Natsu were an official couple, the world was just… _better_.

"Hey," Natsu murmured, nudging her softly. "Relax. You've got nothing to worry about."

Lucy turned, eyes looking up at him. "You mean you're not nervous? _At all?_ "

The boy hesitated a moment, then shrugged. "I mean, of course I am. But I know you'll be there, so everything will be fine."

Lucy couldn't help but smile at his words; she rolled her eyes.

It had been exactly one week since they'd confessed their feelings to each other, and it had changed everything. If Lucy had thought colors were amazing before…well, now it was like someone had finally turned the lights on. Colors were even bolder than she'd thought possible; everything was enhanced in every way. Purples, greens, yellows…even the strange pink of Natsu's hair was prettier. Being this close with him, finally having him be hers and vice versa…it had improved life in every way.

They'd basically been in hiding for the past week. They couldn't help it—the colors were so bright and they were so deeply in love that they just couldn't manage to have anything distract them. They couldn't be bothered going to the guild hall and chatting with others, not when they could be alone with each other. So, they simply hadn't.

They'd gone on a little trip, a little vacation. They hadn't told anyone why—they just told Happy they were leaving and not to worry about them. They'd gone to nearby cities and stayed at cute little hotels and gone for romantic dinners. They walked along the pretty beaches and kissed under the stars and gone for icecream. It had been one week filled with absolute love, absolute adoration for each other. It had been the best week of Lucy's life. She would never forget it.

But they'd soon realized that they couldn't avoid real life for forever. They'd have to go home eventually—life couldn't always be a vacation. So, after one week of kissing and giggling and pure romance, the duo opted to head home.

But now, the real challenge had arrived: telling the guild that they were soulmates.

Lucy already knew what was going to happen. The girls would scream and shout and beg for intimate details of what happened; the boys would scoff and act grossed out, but try to subtly question what it was like and how they knew and how long they'd been in love.

She'd been dreading it. For one, she was very protective of what she had with Natsu; it was the most intimate feeling in the world, and sharing it with others just felt sort of wrong. And secondly, she'd been hiding the fact that she could see colors from her friends for _months_. She didn't want to even _guess_ how much she was going to be grilled about that.

But Natsu was calm and collected, not worried in the slightest. He loved his friends, and he loved his Lucy, and he couldn't see how telling them would be any problem at all. Besides, he'd have Lucy beside him at all times. Nothing bad could happen with Lucy there.

And so, they'd walked into the guild hall hand-in-hand (Lucy's hands were notably sweaty, which made Natsu snort), capturing the attention of all of their guild mates. The entire place fell to silence, a hush sweeping over the crowd as they watched the pair.

"Oh god," Lucy whispered, cringing into the boy.

He seemed amused. "Relax, Luce. It's gonna be fine."

Natsu tugged on her hand, leading her over to the stage. Lucy hesitated at first, unsure of what his plans were—she'd sort of hoped they'd just be seen holding hands and that would be that—but his hand was warm and strong against hers, and he'd flashed her a soft smile, and everything that she'd been worried about was thrown out of the window.

He tugged her on stage, grabbed the microphone, and cleared his throat. Lucy held onto his hand for dear life.

"Hey everybody," Natsu said, voice deep in the mic. "Just have a little announcement to make here."

The crowd watched them silently, all eyes on the pair.

"Turns out, Lucy and I are soulmates!" He paused, grinning that goofy smile at the crowd. "And it took us a little while to figure it out, but we did, and we're super in love and can see colors and stuff."

Lucy squeezed his hand nervously. The way he said it was so…simple. Like it was plain and simple, like the fact that they hadn't known this entire time hadn't torn them both apart. It had fucked Lucy up mentally, confusing her for the better part of a year…all while Natsu had basically been physically tortured by ignoring it.

His honesty, his simple awareness of what they'd endured…it was sweet.

The crowd was quiet for a long beat.

"We already knew that!" Cana grumbled from under her barrel of booze.

Lucy frowned. "What?"

"Yeah—weren't you guys already together?" Someone else in the crowd spoke up.

Natsu chuckled; Lucy made a face.

Master Makarov stood up. "You mean to tell me that you guys _weren't_ dating this entire time?"

"No!" Lucy sputtered, shocked by the lack of response they were receiving from their friends. "We were just… _friends!_ "

"You two _were_ very close," Erza noted. "We all just assumed you two were soulmates and had already figured it out."

Lucy looked up at Natsu, shaking her head; he smirked down at her.

"See?" He murmured. "Told you they wouldn't care."

Lucy rolled her eyes, smiling to herself. "I guess so. I should listen to you more often."

"Yeah, we just kinda figured," Lisanna said, shrugging. "Just like Levy and Gajeel—everyone _knows_ their soulmates already, y'know?"

Gajeel's voice broke out from the far side of the guild. "Wait— _what?_ "

Lisanna blinked. "You mean you _aren't_?"

"No, no—they have to be," Erza said, agreeing with Lisanna. "Because Levy was telling me about how she was seeing the color green a lot the other day. It couldn't be anyone else. Right?"

The hush washed over the crowd again, everyone turning to look at Gajeel and Levy.

Gajeel looked over at Levy, his expression suddenly crumbling into something that no one could dissect. His voice was low and he tilted his head to the left slightly. "Levy—can you see…"

Levy's head was down, her eyes slammed shut from the sheer embarrassment of what was occurring. Because _of course_ she'd been seeing colors—she'd been seeing them from the very first moment the big dumb idiot decided to be nice to her. They'd fought for so long but somehow the raging annoyance she'd felt for him had shifted—and the next thing she'd known, she'd fallen in love with him. But she'd never known what to do, or how to tell anyone, because how could she have fallen in love with the one person who'd annoyed her the most?

But the truth was out now—Levy knew she shouldn't have trusted Erza with such secretive information—and there was no denying it. It was now or never.

So Levy squeezed her eyes shut, kept her head down, and squeaked out, "Yes, I can—and it's you. It was always you."

"Levy…" Gajeel's voice was rough, unreadable. "Since when?"

"Since…I don't know. Does it matter? Since the first day you said I was smart, the first day you smiled a _real_ smile at me." She didn't look up at him. "For a while, now."

His big hand gently pulled her chin up so he could see her face. To his surprise, Levy had tears streaming down her cheeks. Gajeel wiped them away softly.

"You don't have to cry, little one." He paused, smiling down at her. "I can, too."

The crowd gasped.

Through the loud speakers, the audience could hear Natsu whispering to Lucy. "Oh, he totally loves her. Told you, Luce."

Levy's eyes snapped open. "You _what?_ "

Gajeel shrugged down at her. "I can see colors." He hesitated. "Because of you."

"Since when?"

He grinned. "Since the very first day, half pint." His big hand landed on her head, patting her hair, just like he'd always done to annoy her. "Loved you right from the start."

She frowned. "Then why'd you always bug me so much?" Levy pressed.

Gajeel smirked. "You're cute when you're mad."

Levy rolled her eyes. "Idiot."

"Aw, c'mere," He muttered under his breath, pulling her in close and kissing her softly.

The crowd erupted into cheers and clapping, everyone celebrating the pair _finally_ getting together. Cana grabbed a beer and offered a celebratory shotgun, downing the drink within seconds. Elfman noted how manly the entire confession had been. Makarov seemed pleased that his children were so happy.

"I have an announcement, too!" Gray called out, hopping up on stage. "Can I have the mic, Natsu?"

Natsu handed his friend the mic, opting instead to stand behind Lucy and wrap his arms around her waist; he rested his chin on her shoulder.

Everyone turned their attention back to the stage, leaving Levy and Gajeel to make out in peace.

"I'd like everyone to know that as of last night, _that_ beautiful woman sitting in the front row will be my bride!"

The crowd went nuts; more screaming and shouting and cheering. Cana shotgunned two beers.

Lucy's eyes got wide and she looked at Gray. "You guys are getting married?"

Gray nodded; in the crowd, Juvia held up her hand to reveal a diamond ring on her finger.

"Congrats, buddy," Natsu said, clapping Gray on the back.

"Thanks," The water mage murmured back. He looked happy, peaceful even, like all those months of pain and suffering had never happened. Because he'd found the love of his life and she was going to be his wife soon enough, and nothing else really mattered. "We're really happy about it."

"That didn't take you very long!" Lucy teased playfully.

Gray shrugged. "When you've found your soulmate…what's the point in waiting?"

Lucy smiled, her chest warm…because she'd found hers. After so long, after so much struggle…her soulmate was right here, his arms around her. He squeezed her tightly and pressed a kiss to the side of her head, smiling into it.

She was so happy she could burst.

Makarov hopped up on stage and took the mic, suggesting that the guild party hard tonight to celebrate the ultimate trifecta of romance: Lucy and Natsu, Gajeel and Levy, Gray and Juvia. The crowd exploded into action; everyone headed to the bar to get a drink, to get food, to get a celebratory shot. The music turned on and people began to dance. In the far back corner, a fight had already broken out.

Lucy hugged Natsu closer, pulling him in so she could whisper in his ear.

"I love you."

He flashed her that goofy lopsided smirk, then murmured, "I love you too. And don't worry—you're gonna be my wife. I just have to find a ring."

Lucy rolled her eyes, cheeks flushing. She hugged his arms tighter around her, then peered back out to the crowds before her.

Everything was colorful. Blues, purples, yellows….even the pink of Natsu's hair.

She'd found her rainbow. It was everything around her. Because of him.

A/N: yep, that's the end. Thanks for reading, I enjoyed writing this piece! I might add an epilogue onto it in a few months, I tend to revisit my stories and add a little more on once its completed. So keep an eye out for that. Thanks for all of the support! I'm hoping to get into a better schedule for writing and I'm hoping to have a few stories up this summer, so keep an eye out for that as well! Thank you for everything!


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